Kingdom Hearts: Princes of Heart
by Mearad
Summary: Female teenager Sora has always wanted to go explore other worlds with her best friends,Riku and Kairi-except they get separated in the process. In a journey to find her precious friends, Sora slowly matures as she comes to understand her responsibilities of having the title of "keybearer" and juggles to protect those dear to her. (Genderswitch Princesses of Heart)
1. Sora, Riku and Kairi

**Me:** Hello everyone! I have _finally_ decided to start posting this story (yes, that means some chapters have already been written). Be warned! I have tried my hardest at editing by so far have nobody else to check it. If there is any mistakes, do tell because I want to make this story as good as possible!

 **Sora:** Mearad doesn't own Kingdom Hearts or any of its characters.

 **Riku:** You up for a spar, Sora?

 **Me:** *glares with fury in her eyes at Riku*

 **Riku:** Look, I said I was sorry! If you were Sora, you would have dodged that! How was I meant to know? I mean, you both have the same hair-

 **Me:** Kakashi!

 **Kakashi:** *ties Riku up and starts dragging him around as he giggles whilst reading his perverted orange book*

 **Kairi:** You know, Kakashi comes from another of your fanfics, right...? Why did you drag him into the author's notes in this one...?

 **Me: O_O** OH! Kakashi, you'd better go bother Sasuke or something! Shoo now, go on!

 **Kakashi:** *gets annoyed and throws the tied up Riku towards Mearad, who barely manages to duck in time*

 **Riku:** Urghh... I'm still alive... maybe...

 **Sora:** Wasn't Riku meant to be the cool one?

* * *

 _ **Destiny Islands was surrounded by infinite amounts of sea water- meaning that the food of the world was seafood based. The fishermen sold their freshly caught goods to businesses or sold them directly to the public. Their goods were traded for certain items or for money.**_

 _ **The children of Destiny Islands were educated in the common subjects the mayor deemed appropriate(the mayor was the head of Destiny Islands and often developed decisions to help better the village-see page 5 for more details).**_

 _ **The children went to school every year starting from the age of seven, learning for nine months of the year and having the summer holidays off. The children would continue to do this for ten years when, at roughly 17 or 18 years old, they would be welcomed into the world of the adults and would chose their own paths on the island.**_

 _ **Their own paths consisted of what job career they wanted to pursue. These include but are not limited to: fishing, farming and planting, building, teaching, writing, knitting, cooking and packaging or running a business. All jobs offered take part on the island or in the waters surrounding it.**_

 _ **For there was no other jobs but the ones the island offered, as there was no other worlds but the island. People had tried to go search for other worlds before (though this was unusual, as not many people thought to look outside their own world which was a prosperous and happy place) though they found no evidence of other worlds.**_

 _ **They were the only place.**_

 _ **It was only them.**_

 _Or are they the only place in the world?_

Sora moaned in annoyance and put down the book she had borrowed from her school library, fed up with the same answer. And then she remembered the school test that was coming up in two days.

 _I'm in for it now…_

Sitting next to her (she was currently in her room lying on the floor over a squashy beanbag) was the book she was _supposed_ to be reading. Complex math's formulas and their solutions were shown in the book (which was called _Maths For Dummies)_. She had a test on the last day of school (which was two days away) and yet, she hadn't even started reading it.

Even though maths was her worst subject.

Even though said book will probably boost her average score results.

 _Oh well…I'll just study…Later…_

Sighing, she put her hands behind her head and stared up at the roof of her bedroom (which was filled with boat models and even a toy octopus monster). Her brain was too busy thinking of what other worlds _did_ exist out there (because she was _sure_ that the people who had looked before hadn't been looking far enough).

 _I just know that there are other worlds…Kairi's proof, after all!_

She, Riku and Kairi would find those worlds-no matter what!

"Hey Sora."

Heavy feet landing on her wooden floor near the window made her startle a little and she grinned as she saw Riku (who had jumped through her window… _again_ ).

"You know the matron hates when you do that." Sora pointed out and Riku snorted.

"It's not my fault your bedroom window is easy to get to because it's on the ground floor." Riku retorted, shoving her over and making room for himself to sit on the beanbag with her.

"Hey!" Sora complained, even as she was shoved half way off the bean bag (she was too used to it by now to really care). "I was doing my homework!"

Riku raised his eyebrows, even as he stood back up and picked up one of the books. "I'm pretty sure Kairi told me you were going to study for maths. This doesn't look like your maths book."

Sora floundered for a bit before quickly trying to recover her end of the argument. "Well, when you startled me, I dropped the book under the other books!"

Riku smirked, something which brought a sinking feeling into Sora's chest as if she realised she had somehow fallen into a hole and lost the argument. "When I got to your window, you were staring up at the roof. That is not studying, is it?"

Sora gave up, leaning back on the beanbag after throwing the book she was meant to be reading at Riku (who easily dodged it). "I admit, I may have gotten bored…"

"After the first page?" Riku smirked, butting in and Sora poked her tongue out at him.

"Maths is so stupid though!" Sora scowled, her face scrunching up. "And what's with all those stupid formulas? When am I going to use them in real life? I mean, 3x and 2y=24!? Why do I need to know that?!"

Riku shrugged, leaning down on the beanbag too and joining his female friend in staring at the roof of the room. "So what were you doing besides staring into space?"

Sora shrugged a bit. "I was reading one of the school library books. You know, 'The History and Exploration of Destiny Islands'."

Riku scoffed, turning to face Sora. "I already read that one. Don't bother. It's another one stating that there are 'no other worlds'. They obviously haven't looked at Kairi's situation."

 _Heh. That's exactly what I had been thinking._

They were both silent for a moment, remembering that fateful day when Kairi first showed up and brought an unheard-of event to Destiny Islands. A new person not from their village.

Then Sora realised something.

Sora quickly got up, scowling at Riku. "So I read all of that for nothing?!"

Riku got up too, smirking a bit. "Why, too hard for poor Sora's brains?"

Sora threw her maths homework at him, which he caught easily.

"Thanks Sora." Riku headed towards the window. "For giving me your homework to keep."

Sora's mouth dropped open and she quickly ran after Riku, who left through her window, laughing. "Come back here! RIKU!"

 _It's bad enough I wasn't reading the maths book! If I don't even show up with some form of equations tomorrow, I'll be in so much trouble! And that's only without Kairi finding me first!_

Later (4pm):

Sora followed Riku into the secret place, a smile coming onto her face as she smelt the fresh earth of their favourite spot. Her clothes were rumpled and her body felt battered and bruised but that was just a normal occurrence after fighting and losing to Riku in a spar.

"Hey Sora, Riku." Kairi said, looking up (he lay on his stomach, bent over a book) from the middle of the secret place and giving a small wave.

"Hey Kairi…" Sora said nervously, distinctly reminded of a certain something (cough-homework) she was meant to be doing, especially when Kairi was nearby (he'd probably kill her when he realised she wasn't studying).

That even when Riku gave Sora her homework sheets back, she still hadn't done the work.

Riku had bolted to the peer where they had their small one-person boats, jumping in with Sora's homework held hostage. Sora, being the valiant hero she was, followed suit and proceeded to forget all about the damsel in distress (her homework) and start playing with Riku instead.

 _Well, we were on the play island by the time I caught up to Riku and got my homework back…It seemed a waste not to have a spar and all while we were here…I wonder if Kairi will still kill me…?_

Though, astonishingly enough, Kairi didn't pick up on the fact Sora wasn't doing her homework. Instead, the red head went straight back to looking down at the book in front of him and taking notes down in a second blank book occasionally.

"Don't worry Sora." Riku said, grinning and slinging an arm around Sora's shoulders. "Kairi's doing something else instead. He won't bite your head off for not doing your homework…again."

"Really?" Sora asked surprised, missing the small twitch the red head made.

 _Usually Kairi studies like mad before a test. I've heard him tell me enough times to study that this is definitely not normal behaviour._

"I found a book in father's study." Kairi explained, still not looking up as he continued to write. "It details how to make a perfect raft that can last for weeks on end in the water."

 _Our ticket out._

Sora's eyes widened as the sheer rarity of the book for teenagers like themselves. Any books that had to do with a job on the island was usually restricted from teenagers before they graduated high school because of the required adult supervision.

As Riku, Sora and Kairi had expressed interest in seeing the outside world from a young age, it was impossible to find any adult to teach them how to create a raft or even give them a sneak peak at a book detailing boat driving. All the villagers knew the trio would leave as soon as they knew how to. Sora was sure Kairi's adoptive father being the mayor probably had something to do with people knowing not to teach the three of them.

But it meant they couldn't leave until they graduated.

Or at least, that changed now that they knew how to leave.

 _We can finally leave!_

"So…You're copying out the information because…?" Sora asked, wondering why Kairi was wasting time writing down the information when they could be _actually creating the raft!_

"Don't get too excited." Riku pulled Sora into a headlock. "If you burst and tell anyone this information, what do you think will happen?"

Sora's eyes widened.

 _They'll take the book!_

And then she glared, even as she was still in a headlock from Riku. "But I wouldn't tell anyone!"

Kairi got up, putting down the pen and hitting Riku on the arm so he released Sora. "He's joking. It's encase father notices the book's gone. I have to write down everything and then put it back as quick as possible."

"Yeah. When we pull this off, we can leave three years earlier than we intended." Riku smiled, eagerness in his eyes.

As Riku was 15 years old, he had another three years to go before he could apply for a career in carpentry or boating and learn how to leave the island with a suitable boat or means of travel.

"Great! When are we going to leave?!" Sora asked, bouncing up and down excitedly.

"Probably over the summer holidays." Riku admitted. "It's the best time, because we'll have plenty of time to create the raft and get a whole day's worth of travel before the adults even notice we're not home for dinner."

Riku saying 'adults' instead of 'parents' was not a mistake but a carefully worded sentence. Sora had lost her parents to a boating accident a year ago and since then, Riku was careful that he said 'the adults' instead of 'our parents'.

He was just thoughtful like that.

Of course Sora was sure Kairi was the one who first suggested they say 'adults' instead of 'parents'. But it didn't matter.

Both of her best friends had been there for her, after all.

Sora sighed as she sat down on the ground, staring at one of the drawings she and Kairi had done when they were smaller. It was of each other's faces-it had been a game.

"Your drawing of Kairi sucks." Riku sniggered as he saw drawing-Kairi's face. "Now you know why I didn't participate in these drawings."

Sora glared at him, shoving him slightly before narrowing her eyes at the drawing. "It…kinda' looks like Kairi…"

"If you squint hard enough." Riku smirked. " _…maybe_."

Sora huffed again before turning back to Riku. "I bet you're just jealous. After all, I heard Wakka tell me that you were absolutely horrible at drawing!"

Riku blinked. "I'm better than you."

Sora scowled as Riku patted her on the head but just as she was about to retort, Kairi spoke.

"By the way Sora…" Kairi said as he put the books away (he had announced he'd write the last chapter tomorrow morning before slipping the book back in his father's shelf). "What was that Riku said about you not doing your homework?"

Sora laughed awkwardly, scratching the back of her head nervously even as Riku burst out laughing while Kairi continued to shoot a burning glare at Sora.

Turning to Riku, Sora's face was one of hope and pleading. "…You distract him while I run?"

* * *

 **Me:** So what do you think? It will be a few chapters before we actually get to the beginning of the 'game' scenes on Destiny Islands, as I want to show what Riku, Kairi and Sora are like (in my opinion, the game doesn't show them enough).

 **Sora:** Can you review for us or something?! PLEASEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE


	2. School is boring

**Me:** Second chapter is up, peoples! Updates will continue at this fast pace until we actually reach the chapter I am up to writing (can anybody guess where that is?)

 **Sora:** I don't get it. Should I, the actor, be a _girl_ Sora or a _boy_ Sora?

 **Me:** Well, seeing as in my story, you're a girl, I guess you should pretend your a girl, even off stage (ie. the story)

 **Sora:** Oh... Okay!

 **Kairi:** I don't care what you think, Mearad. You don't own Kingdom Hearts or the characters so nyah! *Kairi pokes a childish tongue out and laughs)

 **Me:** Enjoy the reading and **somebody please review or I will feel saddddddddddddddddd**

* * *

 _Man, I'm tired…_

"You know, that's the third time you've yawned." Kairi raised an eyebrow at her as they sat at their table. "We've still got maths left."

Sora groaned, her face hitting the table as another yawn escaped her. "Can't I-"

" **No.** " Kairi smiled at her. "The test is tomorrow and you're going to sit and do some maths equations."

"But Kairi-" Sora began and from near the front of the class, Tidus shook his head, calling out to Sora as he did.

"You know it's not going to work Sora!" Tidus grinned, drawing Selphie's attention (the rest of the class were too used to this event occurring to really notice anymore and Selphie just liked to be entertained). "Kairi's impossible to disobey!"

Sora sighed, looking miserably outside the classroom as the truth sunk in.

The school was on the west side of Destiny Islands, on higher ground encase there was floods or bad storms-that way the youngsters of Destiny Islands were the most protected. Of course, Sora had no idea how they were protected seeing as storms mostly only happened at night when they _weren't_ at school.

The class was murmuring softly to each other as they waited for their next teacher and their last session for the day-maths. They only had one more day of school after this and then it was freedom for the whole summer.

"I still can't believe Sora's going to stay and do some work. With Kairi there, she has no chance of sleeping through it" Tidus shook his head as he watched the fourteen year old brunette stare outside the window with a glum expression. "It seems Sora knows it too."

"You're forgetting one thing about Sora." Selphie giggled as she pointed at Kairi. "Sora's impossible to refuse."

Indeed, Kairi looked guiltily at Sora's miserable silence. In fact, he looked just about ready to agree…

And then the teacher walked in.

"Too late." Selphie giggled again at Kairi's crestfallen face. "But I'm pretty sure they'll sneak out somehow."

"True." Tidus grinned as he took his seat, staring at their maths teacher (who was bald and liked to wear a green shirt with flowers and black pants for nine days out of ten). "They always do that, after all."

"Well, Kairi is just as much a daredevil as Riku and Sora." Selphie whispered quietly. "And-"

"Ms Selphie, care to stand up here and solve this equation." The maths teacher frowned at her as he wrote an equation on the board. "Seeing as you're talking so much, why not show the class your skill."

Selphie sweat dropped but got up and tried to do the equation to the best of her abilities, nervous because she could feel everyone's eyes on her. Turning around, she paused as she headed back to her seat.

Well, she had _almost_ everyone's eyes on her.

Kairi and Sora had already made their escape.

Five minutes later…

"And so, with the fish epidemic…" the teacher droned on and on.

"Psst."

Riku twitched but turned his head a fraction, letting them know he had heard them.

"We're skipping." Sora's eager voice whispered through the slightly ajar door. "You coming?"

Riku grinned a little, careful to keep his face blank a second later as he gave a slight nod. He closed his books up quietly, putting them in his bag so the teacher didn't notice him missing when he made his escape. Wakka seemed to have caught on instantly what Riku was doing but then again, Riku skipped with Sora and Kairi so many times that it was hard not to notice the signs when Riku was leaving.

Not to mention that Sora's and Kairi's faces were peeking out from the ajar part of the door.

Sora waved, beaming at Wakka as Kairi rolled his eyes and Riku resisted the urge to face palm.

Sora was always doing that.

"…boats travelled further than before and…" the teacher continued, not looking around at the half asleep class as he continued the history of some fish epidemic twenty years ago, speaking to the board.

What the heck did Riku need to know that for? He was going to be leaving Destiny Islands soon, after all. Besides, he wasn't the only one who thought history was a bore. Riku could see how half the class was either sleeping or passing notes to one another.

"…Lena conducted research on the cause-" the teacher stopped suddenly as somebody knocked on the door. "Come in."

Riku smirked. That was the signal.

Silently getting up out of his seat, a few glances went his way before the other 15yr olds went back to sleeping or passing notes.

They all knew what Riku was doing. It was why Riku always sat near the back door of a classroom.

Then Riku was out the door, schoolbag in hand, grinning at Sora. Turning his head, Riku smirked as he heard a few sniggers from his class as the history teacher continued to ask 'who's there' but Kairi only continued to rap on the front door, never opening it.

 _What an idiot._

"Pfft!" Sora held in her laugh, even as Riku nudged her and nodded to Kairi, who flashed him a grin in return.

"Let's go!"

The three of them ran down the hallway and out the school, intent on getting a head start to the play island.

2pm:

"Take that!" Sora shouted, launching forward and throwing all her weight into the attack against Riku.

 _Hopefully I'll catch him off guard!_

"Omph!" Riku was thrown to the ground but before Sora could cheer, Riku had launched back towards her, kicking off from the ground and bulldozing right into her. "Ha!"

This time it was Sora on the ground, dizzy and winded as Riku grinned above her. Standing up properly, Riku stretched and grabbed the wooden sword out of his female friend's hand.

"I win." Riku smirked, looking back at Sora who was getting up and rubbing her arm. "I really thought you were better than that."

"Here."

Sora looked up to see Kairi smiling at her, extending a hand to help her up. "Thanks Kai."

Grabbing his hand and standing up, Sora was about to scowl when she noticed something. Grinning, she stood in front of Riku.

"Funny. You seem to be breathing hard." Sora smirked. "Not such an easy battle, after all?"

Riku scoffed but nudged her playfully. "As if _you're_ a challenge."

"Come on, you two." Kairi grinned at them as they all walked to the back of the island where the coconut trees and the bridge was. "Knock it off. You've had your spar now."

"Fine." Sora grinned, watching as Riku walked in front of her and Kairi before an idea came to her.

"Sora…" Kairi warned, somehow able to read Sora's body language that she was going to do something.

"Relax."

And then Sora leapt at Riku's back, wrapping her hands around his neck and swinging off of him. "Wheeeeeeeeeee!"

Riku choked for a second, stumbling a little at the force of Sora jumping on his back. "S-Sora, what the heck?!"

Kairi burst out laughing as Sora continued to laugh and swing off Riku's back.

"Get off, idiot!" Riku shouted, trying in vain to pry Sora's fingers off from his neck. "Sora!"

And then Kairi launched himself on Sora's back and the three of them toppled onto the ground, two out of three erupting into more laughter.

"That was awesome!" Sora high fived with Kairi while Riku huffed.

"Why am I friends with you both?" Riku muttered and Kairi grinned.

"Because you love us and would be completely alone without us." Kairi poked his tongue out as the three of them got up and started walking passed the coconut trees.

"Hey, did you finish copying the book?" Sora asked as they reached the bridge, opening up a coconut by breaking it in half.

"Yep." Kairi nodded, accepting half of the coconut from Sora. "Father didn't even notice it was gone."

"That's good." Riku nodded, leaning against the rock wall. "We'll be able to start the raft as soon as school ends."

"Hey…" Sora asked suddenly, a frown coming onto her face before she sighed and shook her head. "Never mind…"

Riku and Kairi looked at each other, surprised. Sora was _never_ able to keep her thoughts hidden from them.

"What's up?" Riku frowned, standing in front of Sora and looking down at her, trying to see her face. "What's wrong?"

"Do…" Sora frowned again, looking away and sighing.

"Come on, you can tell us." Kairi smiled, staring at Sora, biting his lip in the process. "What's wrong?"

"When we go to the other worlds…" Sora mumbled, her eyes flickering to her friends. "Will…Will we eventually split apart? You know, never hang out?"

Riku burst out laughing with Kairi, much to Sora's anger.

"I was being serious-" Sora began but Riku cut her off.

"I know." Riku grinned. "But that was just amusing."

"You're being stupid, Sora." Kairi chuckled. "We're leaving together and we'll stick together-through thick and thin."

Sora laughed nervously as a blush of embarrassment sprung up on her cheeks. "Sorry…"

"Don't worry." Riku said, nudging her slightly. "It doesn't suit you, Sora. Just leave the worrying to us."

Sora raised her eyebrows. "How does that make me feel better? Of course I worry too, you know."

Kairi smirked suddenly. "It's just Sora's a lot better at keeping a happy face then you are, Riku."

"Shut up." Riku huffed again as Sora grinned with Kairi again.

* * *

 **Me:** Don't you just find their friendship adorable? I was almost squealing as I wrote these first few chapters!

 **Kairi:** Don't worry everybody! We'll get up to the actual plot soon! As stated before, these chapters are just to show-

 **Sora:** -How awesome the three of us are!

 **Me:** I... suppose everyone could look at it like that, yeah. Well, review please!

 **Me:**... PLEASEEEE!


	3. End of School

**Me:** Day 3, update number 3! Hope everybody enjoys this! Don't forget to review or I'll feel sad...

* * *

"Rikuuuuuuuuuuu!" Sora's shout was heard throughout the whole school hallway as she launched at the one year her senior, looking half relieved, half Sorafied zombie.

"Sora?" Riku asked, even as he stumbled while Sora continuously shook his shoulders back and forward (Sora was quite strong when she wanted to be). "What's wrong this time? You should be happy that the last day of school is over."

Kairi walked up to the both of them, rolling his eyes at Sora's antics. "Guess who decided to sleep halfway through the maths test? Honestly, you're such a lazy bum Sora. And how do you even manage to find such weird places to sleep in?"

"Do I even want to know?" Riku raised his eyebrows.

Sora sniffed, sighing miserably. "I'll probably get a D…"

"The teacher didn't even notice her sleeping, body half in the chair, half sleeping on the window ledge." Kairi said, almost amazed. "It's like he expected you to _actually_ stay awake in your test today."

"Well, hopefully you did good enough that you don't have to take remedial classes." Riku shook his head and the three of them walked out to the front of the school. "Then again, even though you _do_ sleep in most of your maths tests, you still manage to get Cs so I suppose we won't have to worry that much."

Sora chuckled nervously. "Well…that's mostly from the multiple choice questions…I usually pick the correct ones…I only get around five or ten short answer and extended response questions correct…The rest I forget to do because…I fall asleep…"

"Really, if you'd just stay awake and bring yourself to do the maths questions and practice, you'd get a really good score." Kairi admonished Sora, who was choosing not to listen anymore about brain traumatising school.

"Let's get some ice cream!" Sora said, eyes sparkling as she saw the vendor just outside the school.

 _Nothing like a brain freeze to melt the trauma-inducing experience of school every week!...Was that a paradox…Brain freeze…melting…? Meh, who cares?! ICE CREAMMMMMMM!_

"Every time…" Riku muttered, rolling his eyes as Kairi nodded, agreeing with Riku's statement. "How is it every Friday Sora falls into the vendor's trap and ends up buying ice cream just because it's a Friday?"

"She's gullible." Kairi answered, even as they both rushed towards Sora to stop her from spending all of her pocket money on ice cream (they _did_ need money if they were going to make a raft and leave the island over the summer holidays).

Only half succeeding in preventing Sora from spending her money (she still managed to buy a cup full of ice cream), Kairi's father (the mayor) came by to collect all their bags (they were all going to sleep over at Kairi's place).

The trio, now with their hands empty (except for Sora's ice cream), headed for their celebratory stop as per normal.

The play island.

"The usual?" Kairi asked as he noticed both Sora and Riku get into their individual boats quickly in anticipation.

It was a tradition that every time they visited the play island after school, especially on the last day of school that both Riku and Sora would race there. Though they competed in nearly everything else with Kairi being the referee, these end of year races were special as the winner gets to boss the loser around for a whole day.

"Of course we're doing this!" Sora grinned before smirking at Riku. "I'm definitely going to beat you to the island this time!"

Riku smirked right back, flexing his muscles as he grabbed his oar. "You sure about that? Who's the one who has always won so far?"

Sora scowled, even as Riku grinned and Kairi started the countdown.

"Ready?! GO!"

They were both off and Sora hid a smile even as Kairi finally noticed the rope that was attached to Riku's boat and connected to the pier. As Riku was speeding along, the rope was getting shorter and shorter and soon, it would have no more room and yank whatever it was tied to back.

Which meant Riku's boat.

"Sora…" Kairi muttered, a smirk coming onto his face.

Of course, Sora (who _was_ the culprit) didn't count on Riku doing the same to her boat and the both of them found themselves flying out into the ocean as their boats were yanked to a stop by the two offending ropes holding both back.

"WHAAAAA!" Sora shouted as she fell face first into the water.

She told anybody who listened that Riku screamed like a girl when he fell into the water too.

Breaking the surface of the water, spluttering and in denial, Sora was met with an equally shocked face.

"Hahaha!" Kairi was laughing back on the peer, trying to hide a smirk but failing. "You both fell for my idea! Ahahaha! You really both did it!"

Immediately, Sora and Riku shared a look. It _was_ Kairi who had suggested the idea…Nothing was said between Sora and Riku but they both sank under the water, quickly swimming towards Kairi who had doubled over laughing because he found it so funny.

Of course, he regretted that the moment they pushed him into the water as well.

He came up spluttering indignantly, his short red hair sticking to his face much like Sora's and Riku's were.

Both Riku and Sora burst out laughing and Kairi just rolled his eyes, shoving them playfully even as he grabbed the pier and climbed back on to get to his boat. Riku and Sora swam back to theirs, taking off the rope so they could continue before they realised they were still in the middle of a race and promptly sped off again towards the play island.

Later…

"Hey guys!"

Sora, Riku and Kairi looked up.

They were currently sitting on the sand, near enough to the sea that they could smell the salt but far enough that they wouldn't get wet. After all, the whole point they were sitting in the sun and not in the secret place was because they needed to dry off.

"Hey Tidus." Riku acknowledged as the (sporty teen that always liked to challenge him) boy ran up to them.

"Any of you guys up for a match?" Tidus asked eagerly before blinking at Sora.

And blinking again.

"Sora, what-"

"Don't ask." Sora said irritably as she tried moving.

"Sora, you know you can't." Kairi teased as he patted her on the head. "Riku won the match. He's ordered you to stay buried in a hole."

As Kairi said, Sora was buried in the sand with only her head being able to be seen.

"Grr…Riku, you'd better let me out soon!" Sora glared even as Riku ignored her and seemed to be debating Tidus's offer.

"Meh, I guess we could have a spar." Riku shrugged, getting up and dusting his shorts off.

Before he grabbed his wooden sword though, he shot a smirk at Sora who, successfully provoked, got more enraged.

"GAH!" Sora shouted, squirming as she started to wiggle free. "Let me at him! I'm going to pummel him so bad! ARGH! Stupid sand!"

Successfully getting out the sand, she grabbed one of the wooden swords that Tidus had left on the ground before heading towards Riku.

"Go Sora!" Kairi cheered, laughing as Riku sidestepped her attack which made her nearly crash into Tidus.

"Watch it Sora!" Tidus complained and Sora nodded, a little embarrassed.

"Right! You and me verses Riku?" Sora asked Tidus who smirked in reply.

"Of course! We're the second and third best fighters on the island. If anyone can challenge Riku's spot, it's us!" Tidus said confidently and Riku snorted, finding it all amusing.

"You two, beat me?" he raised his eyebrows. "As if."

As planned, both the hotheads were provoked and shot at Riku, who merely sidestepped their first attack and used his wooden sword to block their next attack.

"Come on now, I thought you were tougher than that." Riku smirked, shrugging and offering his hand forward as if to tell them to have another go.

Sora shot up quickly, bringing her wooden sword down only to have it blocked by Riku again. Then Tidus came from behind him, thinking Riku had forgotten about him but that was proven wrong when Riku did a backflip and appeared behind Tidus.

In other words, Tidus's attack was heading straight for Sora.

Of course, even if Sora looked like a beginner fighting Riku, there _was_ a reason she was the second toughest fighter on the island.

Quickly bringing up her wooden sword, she blocked Tidus's attack though it caused the boy to become off balance and fall to the ground.

"Ow! Sora!" Tidus complained as he spat out a mouth full of sand and continued to sit on the sand, seemingly had enough.

"Opps…Sorry…Hehe…" Sora scratched the back of her head bashfully as she laughed it off. "Automatic reaction…"

"Never mind-Ah, Sora look out!" Tidus warned, but Sora's moment of distraction had cost her.

Riku lunged for her and she fell to the ground, eyes spinning a bit as she grabbed her head to stop the spinning. Riku then casually sat on her back, preventing her from getting up.

"Apologise for disobeying my order." Riku smirked even as Sora struggled to move from under him (but only succeeded in lifting her arms and legs).

"Grr! Kairi! Tidus! Help! Riku's so heavy he's like a whale" Sora complained but Kairi only shrugged, saying 'the rules' and smirking while Tidus laughed awkwardly.

"Sorry Sora…" Tidus said, smiling weakly. "We still can't beat Riku, even together. I can't really help you there. I'll…See you tomorrow then! Later!"

Sora sighed in defeat as her only means of escape left.

"Going to apologise?" Riku asked as he looked down at her.

Sora scowled.

"Guess that answers that then." Kairi said, coming back to them with his notebook filled with the raft construction information. "We might as well get started now."

"Can't you get off me?" Sora whined but Kairi just continued speaking over her complaint.

"Okay. First we need some logs-we have plenty of that around the island so nothing to worry about." Kairi said, sitting down on the sand and continuing to read the information he had copied down. "We'll need a lot of rope and some evenly cut wood to form the bottom of the raft…I suppose we should save our pocket money to buy some sturdy rope…"

Later that evening…

"Hah!" Sora laughed as she rapidly pressed buttons on the controller she was holding and watched the screen. "You'll never beat my character, Riku!"

Riku too, was out of his characteristic cool self and instead had a concentrated look on his face as he mimicked Sora in rapidly pressing buttons on the controller to counter her attacks. "We'll see about that!"

Kairi was eating some popcorn on the couch alone (Sora and Riku had moved closer to the screen so were now sitting on the floor) and cheering them on occasionally as they fought it out on the game console.

The three of them had headed back for Kairi's house as the sun began to set because they were excited for the sleepover (though both Kairi and Riku firmly believed they went back quickly because Sora was getting hungry).

As Kairi's father was the mayor of the island, the house was quite big and comfy. A large kitchen and dining area was obvious, as the mayor would get guests often.

The house was double story and lived near the high ground of the island, just near the cliffs around three metres high. There was five rooms, two downstairs and three upstairs. While the mayor and his wife used the one down the bottom, it left the other four for Kairi, his friends or occasional guests the mayor brought over.

"Okay you three." Kairi's adoptive mother walked into the room, her chestnut hair and bright brown eyes watching Sora and Riku battle it out on the gaming console while Kairi failed at trying to hide the popcorn he had been eating. "Dinner will be ready in ten minutes. Why don't you all set up your sleeping bags? And Kairi, if you don't finish your dinner…"

Kairi laughed awkwardly as his mother left, even as Sora sighed. She was slightly resigned that she'd never beat Riku as they turned off the gaming console. Riku nudged her, smirking at her as he threw a sleeping bag to her-the pink one.

Sora twitched.

"You know the blue one's mine!" Sora glared as she lunged at Riku, who just held the blue sleeping bag above his head while Kairi rolled his eyes and began to set out his own sleeping bag (a nice green) on the floor behind the couch in his room.

Unfortunately for Sora, Kairi's mother didn't like to call twice and so the brunette gave up and after Riku put the blue sleeping bag beside Kairi's, she put the pink one beside his.

"Alright!" Kairi laughed as Riku ruffled Sora's hair and she swatted his hand away. "Let's go eat!"

Which brightened Sora's mood considerably.

Dinner with the mayor and his wife was usually the same each time (though the dialogue had changed as they grew older).

They would eat in silence for the first five minutes and then start up small conversations.

Then, without fail, the mayor wouldn't be able to contain his curiosity any longer and ask what they were going to be doing for the next six hours (he was usually busy and wanted to keep up with how teenagers acted now-a-days). They'd reply they would play some games, eat more food and probably watch a movie or something (yes, the reply was the same _all the time_ ).

Then, depending on their age, Kairi's mother would say something.

When they had been younger, she'd told the three of them to be careful and not do anything that could make them trip or get hurt.

When Riku had reached 14, she'd told him to not teach Sora or Kairi anything funny nor try anything funny (to his immense embarrassment).

Now that Riku was 15, and Kairi and Sora were 14, she told them over dinner that there was to be no funny business at all and if she caught them doing anything inappropriate, they'd sleep in separate rooms.

They all nodded, knowing how paranoid adults could get (though Sora could never figure out _why_ they were so paranoid. The trio weren't stupid.).

And so, after dinner, the trio went up to Kairi's room and started a movie, a cartoon about a kid trying to help a dolphin learn to swim.

Of course, Riku fell asleep half way through the movie and when Sora caught on, she grinned and grabbed a black marker from Kairi's desk. Kairi grinned as he turned the tv off, watching in anticipation as Sora crept up to the prone form of one of her best friends.

"This is my revenge…" Sora smirked as she opened the marker and headed towards his face…

Only to yelp in shock as Riku's hand grabbed her own and prevented her from drawing all over his face. In fact, it caused her to jump back in shock and both Riku and Kairi burst out laughing as Sora tumbled to the ground from fright.

"Don't _do_ that!" Sora huffed as she got up and Riku grinned, ruffling her hair affectionately.

"You should be quieter next time." Riku remarked but then nodded to the TV. "But not too quiet. Anyway…."

Quick as a flash, Riku had Sora in another headlock and even as Sora was laughing and trying to pry his elbow from under her chin, Riku continued talking as he held her in a headlock. "Apologise for what you were going to do."

"Hahaha! Never!" Sora was still laughing until she was nearly out of breath. "A-Alright…I…m….Sorry! Hahaha!"

Riku shook his head, a smile still on his face as he released Sora. "You're not meant to apologise while laughing."

"That's Sora for you." Kairi grinned, joining his friends on the floor.

"Geez!" Sora grinned despite her words. "You both are mean!"

Eventually, after Riku went up to get some water, Sora did manage to get her revenge by stealing back the blue sleeping bag (getting into it first) and forcing Riku to sleep in the pink one.

Of course, he went back and chose a different sleeping bag (a nice black one) but it didn't change how Sora still felt accomplished and couldn't stop the grin from forming on her face.

"You just keep smiling." Riku huffed at her. "I'll eat all the pancakes tomorrow before you can."

It was a well known fact that Kairi's mother always cooked them pancakes the following morning whenever they slept over for the night.

"It's okay Riku." Kairi said suddenly, grinning a bit as he sat down on his sleeping bag. "Don't you remember? Sora sleeps with a teddy bear because she's scared of the dark. You don't need your revenge."

Riku grinned even as Sora spluttered.

"That's not true at all! Sure, I used to when I was younger but-…You're making fun of me, aren't you?" Sora pouted as she realised Kairi had only been teasing her and she put the sleeping bag over her head, blushing in embarrassment.

"Come on Sora" Riku (she could just imagine his grin even in the sleeping bag) nudged her. "No need to be embarrassed."

Kairi pulled the sleeping bag cover off her and grinned at her even as she tried batting him away with her hands.

"Oh~ Is somebody mad?" Kairi cooed to her and Sora scowled some more but before she could do anything, Kairi hugged her and prevented her from escaping. "Don't worry little Sora! Big Kairi knight will protect you from all the bad monsters so they don't eat her!"

"Now I _know_ you're really making fun of me!" Sora scowled, trying to squirm out of his hold but glaring at him as she realised he had trapped her in her own sleeping bag. "Grrr…Riku, help me out here!"

Riku grinned at her, shrugging a bit as he ignored what she said.

"Nah. I think I like you better like this." Riku said and Sora sighed before beginning to roll around in her sleeping bag, used to having to escape her best friends' traps on her own all the time.

After escaping, the three of them lay down on their sleeping bags staring up at the roof (this at first originated with Sora but the habits eventually rubbed off on Kairi and Riku too so now it was natural that the spent time looking at the roof or at the sky together).

"What will you do when we reach a new world?" Kairi asked suddenly, curiosity in his voice.

"I dunno'…" Sora shrugged. "Probably try their foods or something…I mean, they're bound to be different, right? Imagine if they don't have ice cream!"

Riku snorted. "Of course you'd only think about food."

"Hmph!" Sora turned on her side to face Riku who was looking unimpressed at her. "There's nothing wrong with liking food. I bet you're obsessed with your hair! Aren't you?!"

Riku just rolled his eyes. " _Of course_. You can believe that if you want. Anyway, what will you do, Kairi? Look for your past family?"

Kairi looked at them both, nodding slowly. "I mean…I am happy here…But it'd be nice to know _why_ I came here in the first place…And maybe we could even answer all the questions you have, huh Riku?"

Riku snorted, quietly muttering under his breath. "It's never that easy…"

Sora nudged him, smiling at him. "That just means we can't give up!"

Riku and Kairi smiled back at her, agreeing….just as Sora's stomach growled again.

"Hehe…" Sora blushed in embarrassment as she scratched the back of her head. "What can I say…? When I talked about ice cream…I got hungry…"

Kairi rolled his eyes along with Riku.

"I'll get some food." Kairi said, getting up and heading for the door before pausing and turning back to them with a smile. "I'll bring the photo album too! Mother was saying recently how there was some funny photos in there!"

"Whaaaaaaaat?" Sora whined, not wanting to look at boring photos.

Kairi smirked. "Photos that are embarrassing to Riku."

Sora immediately beamed, finding some sort of enjoyment whenever the tides was turned and it was Riku who was embarrassed. Like now.

Riku, after hearing there was funny photos of him, groaned and scowled at Sora's sniggering. "Shut up Sora."

True to Kairi's word, after reappearing with a bag of peeled prawns, the three of them sat in a circle and opened the photo album.

"Ah! I remember this one!" Sora exclaimed, pointing to a photo in which she was wearing pigtails along with Riku and Kairi (both who were looking embarrassed). "You guys made me wear pigtails and while you both were sleeping, I got revenge and did the same to you!"

Riku huffed, folding his arms. "Guess you were only smart when you were younger then. You can't trick me at all nowadays."

Sora poked her tongue out even as Kairi turned to the next photo.

"Wasn't this meant to be my first graduation photo for my new High School?" Riku asked, pointing to a photo on which he was around eleven while Sora and Kairi were ten.

"Yeah." Kairi grinned as Sora popped another prawn in her mouth. "Father asked the photographer if we could keep the picture, even if the photo wasn't allowed as your school photo because we were in it."

The photo showed a surprised Riku as both Sora and Kairi jumped in the photo with him at the last minute. They had been standing on the beach as the new high schoolers could take their photos wherever they wanted so long as they handed it in with their application form by the second month of the summer holidays.

"That was pretty funny." Sora nodded along, grinning a bit sheepishly. "At least until the photographer got mad because we kept jumping in all of the photos and preventing you from getting a _'proper'_ photo."

"Something wrong with a photo just by myself?" Riku asked, raising his eyebrows and Sora nodded, trying to keep her face serious.

"You need us in the photos!" Sora said knowingly. "You're too unfriendly looking just by yourself!"

"Gee, thanks Sora." Riku said sarcastically as he shoved her a bit, and Kairi turned to the next photo.

"Oh look!" Kairi cooed at the photo and the three of them smiled or blushed in embarrassment (*cough* Riku *cough*). "We're all sharing a paopu fruit!"

"To remain friends forever, right?" Riku had a small smile on his face, though a smirk quickly replaced it and he turned away. "Of course, I don't believe in that childish stuff but it _will_ stay true."

The three of them shared a smile and turned to the next photo.

"Ah, this was during the storm!" Sora exclaimed as the trio looked at a five year old Riku and Sora sitting in the secret place with sleeping bags and a candle near them. "We had snuck out at night when we heard there was going to be a storm…"

"You mean you both camped out in the secret place during a storm?!" Kairi's mouth dropped open. "I knew you two were idiots before I appeared on the island but only now do I realise _how_ idiotic you were."

Riku shoved Kairi, grinning slightly. "Don't be such a sour puss. You know I kept Sora out of trouble-"

"Not that I was a kid and needed somebody to get me _out_ of trouble!" Sora interjected, ignoring the twin smirks from Riku and Kairi and she looked for another photo to change the subject.

This continued all throughout the night, the three teens joking and laughing over what trouble they got into when they were younger or what funny things they always did and finally finding out _why_ everybody thought they were troublemakers.

In the morning when Kairi's father walked in to wake the three teens for breakfast, he shook his head fondly as he closed the door quietly instead.

In Kairi's room, the three of them were sleeping, somehow moving their sleeping bags closer together until they were not even inches apart. All had content smiles on their faces and Kairi's father smiled, proud that even with their yearning to leave, the three of them had such a strong bond.

* * *

 **Me:** All done! Next chapter the plot begins! ...So who can guess what weapon Sora's going to pick? The sword, the shield or the staff?

 **Sora:** Well, I guess I'll go for...

 **Me:** Kaka-... wait, I have to choose somebody else from this game instead of from Naruto... Umm... Kairi...?

 **Kairi:** *takes one look at Mearad as if she is crazy before walking off*

 **Me:**...is anybody going to help me tie up characters so they don't spoil anything? ...OH! YUFFIE!

 **Yuffie:** *suddenly appears and ties Sora up with rope, effectively shutting her up*

 **Me:** Hmph! I guess I can only rely on ninja then!


	4. Awakening

**Me:** Hello! In regards to people's names, unfortunately I do not want to change names (partly because I've already written ahead and partly because I don't want to confuse people).

 **Addressing reviewers:**

 **Mana-** (thank you so much for that review!), did you know 'Kairi' is both a male and female name? I hope it doesn't get too confusing (I've tried to make this Kairi have a personality so hopefully you won't keep thinking of a girl).

 **Shiranai Atsune-** (also thanks for the reviews-for each chapter too!). In regards to Romance, I think Sora is a little too young (14 years old) but if (read: when) I start the Kingdom Hearts II fanfic, I will definitely consider it then.

 **Child of Entropy-** (Thanks for reviewing- that was actually one of the reasons I did this story-I couldn't find any similar ones). I'm glad you like it and hope it continues to be a source of interest (read: awesomeness)

 **Me:** Thank you all for reviewing (but **I won't add comments on reviews all the time but if you ask questions or something, I will explain next chapter so if you need clarification, just ask or PM me** ).

 **Riku:** *looks awkwardly to the side* ...Fine, I'll say the stupid line! Mearad doesn't own Kingdom Hearts or any of its characters!

* * *

"I'm going to the play island!" Sora shouted to the matron, quickly running out the orphanage without a second glance.

The raft was nearly complete.

As per usual, it was a bright, warm sunny day and the ocean was calm as Sora got in her one person boat and rowed to the play island. She was sure Riku and Kairi were already there (she had slept in _again_ ) and knew that Kairi would try and give her even more work to do to make up for her lateness.

"Sora!" Kairi shouted, quickly running up to the brunette. "You're late-"

"Yeah, I know." Sora interjected quickly, shuffling her feel in embarrassment. "I slept in…"

"Lazy people don't get to eat at lunch." Riku remarked casually as he held three pieces of wood over his shoulder.

"Eh…?!" Sora's mouth dropped open and she pouted. "Come on! Give me a break! I've been really tired lately!"

"Are you coming down with a cold, Sora?" Kairi teased lightly but there was an undertone of worry.

Sora shook her head, waving it off with a small smile.

"That's not it." Sora said. "I guess I'm just having trouble getting to sleep."

Kairi rolled his eyes, even as they both joined up with Riku and headed towards the raft. "Honestly, it's probably because you've been eating too many sugary foods before bed."

Sora laughed, though she had a troubled frown on her face as she turned away. She'd even stopped doing that eating the sugary foods encase they were the cause but the dreams still wouldn't go away.

The three of them got to work nailing in the bottom of the raft with a huge flat wooden piece. They were going to put the logs on top and secure them with rope. The seagulls flocked nearby, diving into the water for their early morning meal.

Sora could hear the sounds of the other three kids who shared the island-Tidus, Wakka and Selphie-talking and she had a brief thought to go have a sword fight with them (Tidus would no doubt accept like he always did).

"Not until we're finished." Riku smirked at Sora's startled expression as he stopped hammering the wood they had purchased earlier. "You're too easy to read."

Sora poked her tongue out, even as Kairi brought his hands together. "Alright! Time for a lunch break!"

Sora beamed, even as her stomach growled and Kairi shoved her along. "You keep helping Riku. _I'll_ go and get some food."

Sora sighed but nodded as she saw the determined look on Riku's face as he went back to hammering the raft bottom.

 _Riku really wants to get this raft finished…But then again…so do I!_

"Alright!" Sora smiled, as she got two of the long bamboo sticks Riku had found at the other end of the play island. "I'll make the sails!"

Sometime later…

"Man, when's Kairi coming?!" Sora sighed as her stomach growled again. "I'm hungrrrrryyy!"

Riku laughed, putting down the logs he had tied together on top of the raft and coming to assess Sora's work.

Sora had made the sail base, though she still needed the cloth before they could attach the sail to the boat.

"Come on." Riku nudged her and they began walking back towards the peer on the other end of the island. "Kairi's probably coming back anyway. Might as well as meet him halfway."

Sora nodded, her stomach growling again as she gave a yawn (testament to her lack of sleep) and followed after her silver haired best friend.

Of course, when they reached the pier on the play island, Kairi was still nowhere to be found.

"Urgh…" Sora moaned. "I bet he's went back to his house to make food! That's going to take forever!"

"You know how he is." Riku shook his head. "I should have seen this coming. He hates spending money on food when he can make stuff at home….Oh well, I'm going to look for more logs. We'll split up. You help too."

Sora sighed, still lying on the sand.

She didn't want to get up but she knew she had to help look.

….But the sun was so nice on her face and the sand was warming her up…

…Maybe….maybe she'll look later…After all, she hasn't been sleeping well lately…not with all those weird thoughts keeping her up lately…

 _Maybe it's because we're about to leave for a new world…_

As Sora fell asleep, she once again found herself falling from the sky.

 _ **I'm going to fall…Darkness…is coming…**_

 _Such weird thoughts…_

Sora knew it was a dream because she was watching herself fall into the water. She was watching as Kairi's fear stricken face entered her vision as Sora fell backwards into the sand and he tried to grab her yet she sunk downwards as if she had fallen into water.

 _ **A journey…like none ever before…**_

 _I've…Been having these weird thoughts lately…_

Riku offering his hand to her, even as a huge tide headed towards them and he didn't seem to care. Running to him, Sora held out her hand to grab his but the tidal wave was faster and swept her away from Riku.

 _ **Different paths…so many choices…**_

 _Like…Is any of it real…or not?_

Now, instead of Sora watching her dream self, she once again, with dismay, realised she was now in her dream body. Opening her eyes, she once again found herself floating through the foggy darkness like usual.

 _ **Darkness…it is coming…**_

 _ **Prepare…**_

 _ **Journey…**_

 _Real…Or not…?_

 _ **The Awakening…**_

These weird thoughts in her even weirder dreams were what had been keeping her from her sleep. Yet even when she did manage to fall asleep after hours of contemplating these weird thoughts, she had the same dream anyway. Over and over again.

Or at least, right until this moment.

Sora blinked in astonishment as she landed on a glowing circular platform. The tiles showed a man in a rather expensive-looking suit (much like the ones the mayor wore on his important meeting days).

 _Huh…This is new…I've never experienced this in any of the dreams…_

Taking a step forward, Sora's eyes widened in wonder as white doves flew around her and off into the dark smokiness.

 _ **So much to do, so little time…**_

The thought popped into her head and Sora frowned, once again not sure where this weird thought came from. What was she supposed to do now? This was the first time her dream had ever escalated so far. Usually she'd just have the weird thoughts popping in her head as she floated down the dark smokiness until she woke up. She'd never _landed_ before.

 _ **Take your time, don't be afraid…**_

Sora looked around, still finding nothing that would help end the dream and so she shrugged, taking a step forward to look around (she might have missed something in her first glance).

 _ **The door is still shut…**_

Sora sighed. "…What door? Is this even me thinking these things? These thoughts are too weird, even for me…"

 _ **Now step forward. Can you do it?**_

It was then that Sora realised she _wasn't_ thinking these thoughts and that a voice, genderless and indistinguishable, was telling her all this (it was like an echo and a shout all around her, yet like a whisper and vert quiet in her ear at the same time). "Okay…Definitely not my mind then. Oh well, the voice doesn't seem dangerous or anything. Besides, maybe I'll find out why I'm having these weird thoughts…I just _feel_ that the voice is trying to help me."

Going to the centre of the platform, she waited in anticipation as the voice spoke again.

Instead, she was greeted with the floor vibrating as three stone podiums rose from the ground like magic. Three different items appeared on each podium and while Sora was still too shocked to think, the voice spoke again.

 **Power sleeps within you. If you give it form…It will give you strength.**

Looking around at the three different items, Sora was surprised to see a sword, a shield and a stick with a blue mouse head handle (though all three of them had a mouse head symbol).

 **Choose well.**

There didn't seem to be a time limit and even though Sora knew she had already picked what she wanted, she was still curious about the stick and so went up to it.

 **The power of the mystic. Inner strength. A staff of wonder and ruin.**

 **Is this the power you seek?**

Sora frowned. "So it's magic…Nah…I think…I'll stick with what I'm best at."

Turning away from the staff (at least that was what Sora thought it was), she headed for the sword.

 **The power of the warrior. Invincible courage. A sword of terrible destruction.**

 **Is this the power you seek?**

Sora nodded, already feeling a slight hum vibrating from the sword.

… **You're path is set. Now…What will you give up in exchange?**

Turning around, Sora frowned as she looked at the staff and the shield. If she gave up magic, well…While she wouldn't be able to ever do magic, it isn't like she's used it before (besides, this was only a dream and she wasn't able to cast fireballs or fly). If she gave up defence, it would make her that much more prone to attacks and she wouldn't be able to last as long in battle.

 _And anyway, I'm just trying to find out the reason behind my weird thoughts. It's not like this is a big deal…_

She walked up to the staff, knowing it would help her less.

 **You give up this power?**

"…Yes." Sora replied and gasped when the staff vanished from in front of her and the sword vanished from her left hand.

The next second, the platform started vibrating and suddenly shattered, sending her plummeting through the darkness again though she didn't feel scared. In fact, she felt almost calm as another platform below her was coming closer and closer.

She didn't feel surprised when she suddenly slowed down in her descent and she spun around so her feet landed softly on the platform first.

Sora looked around, noticing another male wearing a expensive-looking suit as the picture on the tiled floor.

And then she saw the floor looking back.

Wait.

Yelping, Sora jumped back as the yellow orb eyes glowed eerily at her.

It wasn't the floor. It was some type of creature that had sunk into it.

"What…?!" Sora frowned, wandering if she had seen right.

 **You've gained the power to fight.**

The sword she had chosen earlier appeared in her hands and thankfully, she didn't drop it from surprise (though it was a close call).

 **Use this power to protect yourself and others. There will be times you have to fight. Keep your light burning strong.**

Sora nodded, getting into a fighting stance as the yellow eyed creature rose from the floor and it's full insect like body appeared in front of her.

Quickly launching forward, Sora attacked the creature and sent it flying back, causing it to disappear in black smoke.

More appeared.

Doing a swerve, she sent the four that had decided to launch at her flying back as well. Then, turning to the other three that had sunk under the floor, she waited until they had risen again before slashing in a downwards motion and defeating them.

Puffing slightly, Sora stood back up with the sword still grasped firmly in her hands. Only until she saw one last creature she must have missed.

It sunk down into the floor and Sora tensed, waiting for it to reappear only to freeze as a pool of darkness seemed to seep to the rest of the floor, including the part of the floor Sora was standing on.

Sora fell into the darkness.

Trying to struggle out of the darkness proved to be a waste, as she only sunk faster. Sora closed her eyes as she sunk into it, only to open her eyes after a while and realise she was still in her weird dream on another tiled floor (though it had no pictures this time).

Looking around, she was quick to notice the huge brown door standing near the edge of the circular platform. Walking towards it automatically, Sora jumped as she heard the voice speak again.

 **The day you open the door is both far off and very near.**

Sora thought she saw a brief flash of the three other kids who played on the play island but suddenly, she found herself on another circular platform in the same darkness as before.

Colourful tiles suddenly appeared and led off away from the platform upwards to another one. Sora shrugged, deciding she might as well follow wherever they leaded to (plus there was a gut feeling that the dream wouldn't end until she'd done it all).

If she hadn't been in a dream and in such a weird place, she probably would have questioned why she was doing things without thinking or worrying at all. True, she was usually curious but that didn't mean she didn't _think_ (well, most of the time…).

Though, this _was_ a dream and as such, her common sense seemed to have ran away and left her to explore her own dream. She didn't run into any more of those monsters as she reached the top of the tiles. Standing on another platform, she walked to the centre, this time expecting the voice to speak (which it did).

 **The closer you get to light, the greater your shadow becomes.**

Looking back at her shadow which seemed to have gotten quite long, her heart lurched as she saw her shadow rise from the floor and stand up-a huge bulking mass more than ten times her height.

It was only as she knew she had to fight this monster than she began to really question the realness of this dream-it felt so _real_ and she could still feel the small pain from one of the monster's claws earlier. The fact that she could even think in the dream was yet another thing warning her.

 **But don't be afraid.**

Though, like the voice said, Sora wasn't afraid. She didn't have _time_ to be afraid as the monster's fist, glowing with a purple light, smashed right where she had been standing seconds before.

Gripping her sword tightly, she swung down, surprised at how easy it was to chop of the monster's hand. It disappeared in a wisp of darkness and the monster didn't even seem to notice that it's hand had been chopped off. Rather, it began to use its other hand while summoning more of the small monsters Sora had fought before.

Chopping off its other hand seemed to make it pause though, as it stopped and then its chest began to glow.

"GAHHH!" Sora yelped as it started raining purple energy blasts. "WHAT TYPE OF DREAM IS THIS?!"

Now, it had totally been an accident when the monster had moved its head within her attacking range to summon more monsters. It had been an accident when Sora shrieked and plunged the sword into the monster's eye.

It had been an accident.

But Sora would later tell herself it was all a part of her plan.

Anyhow, the monster jerked back and fell to the ground. Sora panted, finally realising how tired her body was and the fact that her arms were shaking from the effort of the fight. Then the voice was back.

 **-But don't be afraid**

Looking up, Sora groaned as the monster got back up.

She couldn't fight any longer.

 **You hold the mightiest weapon of all.**

Sora felt her mind shutting down, unconsciousness beckoning to her. She barely heard the voice's next words.

 **So don't forget. You are the one who will open the door.**

* * *

 **Me:** There we have it! Sora's smart (somewhat), isn't she? Choosing the sword because it's her strength and getting rid of magic because she feels she won't use it... Of course, she has no idea what is in store for her. *cough* _seriously_ *cough*

 **Sora:** I'm going to beat Riku's butt!

*finds Riku, figthts and still loses*.

 **Sora:**... WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHAAAAA! *continues to cry pathetically*

 **Me:** Why... do I feel bad?


	5. The Raft

**Me:** Hello everyone! Thanks for reviewing!

 **Sora:** Question time:

 **Me:** Did you just say nap time?

 **Kairi:** What are you thinking of?

 **Me:** Oh, you know... err... Now stop thinking about things! (ps. if anyone can guess the reference, I'll be so happy)

 **Sora:** Anyway, **Shiranai Atsune,** you are right! The princes of heart are the genderbent versions. For example, Princess Jasmine will be male, Belle will be male (naturally, their love interests will be switched too or you can't have the Disney effect).

 **Me:** Sora, stop taking my script and reading as if you are me! *takes the script back* Okay! **Mana,** as much as I'd love to give a hint to Birth By Sleep, I'm actually (kinda') not familiar with the small details of that game, only knowing the plot. (I know, I know, I should play it but... currently playing Kingdom Hearts II... again...).

* * *

Sora could smell the familiar salt of the ocean as she stirred from her sleep. Her first reaction was to get up and make sure she was really alive but sound of the waves seemed to have calmed her enough so that she thought rationally.

 _I must have fallen asleep again…_

Opening her eyes, she blinked slowly and sat up. Staring in front of her, the water continued to creep towards the sand and then back again with the tidal movement. A few seagulls were lazily sitting on the water. A couple of fish jumped out of the water.

There was no sign of Kairi's boat heading Sora's way.

 _Oh well…Might as well get some more sleep…But…I just hope I don't have another one of those dreams…_

Yawning, Sora went to lie back down only to yelp as she saw Kairi's amused face above her.

 _How long was he standing there for?!_

"Wah!" Sora yelped, even as Kairi laughed. "Give me a break Kairi."

"Sora, you lazy bum." Kairi threw her a sandwich that looked pretty well made. "I just _knew_ I'd find you snoozing down here."

Sora grinned before her eyes widened and she remembered her dream. "No! This huge black thing swallowed me up! I couldn't breathe, I couldn't-"

Kairi whacked her over the head, a smirk on his face. "Still daydreaming?"

Sora shrugged, a weak smile coming onto her face as she thought of her dream. "…Yeah."

Kairi sat near her and looked at the ocean while Sora sighed.

 _I…I can't even remember what type of monsters I had been fighting…I know there was a lot of darkness and there was a voice…Something about a door…And there was a big monster that tried to kill me…Urgh…These dreams are getting weirder and weirder…_

"Sora?" Kairi asked worriedly, noting how the usually excited Sora was _too_ quiet. "Are you okay?"

Sora smiled, shaking any thoughts of her dream out of her mind. She couldn't remember that much anyway. Besides, after tomorrow, they would probably be finished the raft! They'd be able to go to the end of the sea and find the other worlds!

 _I wonder what the other worlds look like…Maybe they'll have huge meals that nobody could eat…? Or maybe they'll have the best games-better than even the games in Destiny Island!_

"Hey Kairi…?" Sora asked, biting her lip nervously. "What do you think your hometown will be like?"

Kairi frowned, looking thoughtfully at the sand before looking at Sora. "I'm…not sure. I mean, it's not like I can remember anything."

"Do…Do you ever want to go back?" Sora asked. "And you know…Live there forever?"

 _I…I never really thought about that…What if…What if he doesn't want to come back to Destiny Islands with us?_

Kairi blinked before laughing a bit. "Of course not. I mean, sure I'd like to go there some time. But Destiny Islands with you and Riku is where home is. And even if we leave, I know we can always come back here, right?"

Sora beamed, nodding back as the two of them stared at the ocean again in peaceful silence.

"Hey!"

Both Sora and Kairi turned to see Riku coming towards them, two logs over his shoulder.

"I guess I'm the only one working on the raft?" he asked, before throwing a log to Kairi and a log to Sora. "Great. I'll leave the rest to you then. I'm going to eat."

With that, Riku took the sandwiches Kairi had made and Sora quickly stood up, throwing the log to the side. "Oh no you don't Riku! I'm starving!"

Riku laughed before turning to Kairi. "You're both being pretty lazy today. Come on. We have to leave as soon as possible."

Though Riku said it with a smile, Sora could tell that he was almost impatient to leave and find answers.

"Sure." Sora nodded, getting up and wiping the sand off her shorts. "Let's eat fast and get back to work."

Grabbing the sandwiches off an amused Riku (because she wouldn't trust _him_ with her precious food), the three of them sat and ate as the sun warmed them lightly over their heads.

"I'll race you." Kairi said suddenly (after they finished), jumping up and grinning at them.

"What? Are you kidding?" Riku asked surprised.

It was no surprise Kairi lost every match, with Sora in second and Riku in first. Kairi was less competitive than Sora and Riku, preferring to sit on the sidelines and be the referee.

So the fact that he suggested a competition…

Sora raised her eyebrows at Kairi, wondering what he was playing at but the red head dismissed them. "Ready? Go!"

Despite not really thinking they'd do it, Sora launched up quickly with Riku right on her heels. Kairi was far behind them like always, laughing all the way.

She glared at Riku as he ran passed with ease.

"Grrr! Riku!" Sora growled, trying to run faster. "I bet you're cheating-WAH!"

She ended up introducing her face to the sand. Kairi paused from his running to look at Sora.

"Are you okay, Sora?" Kairi asked and Sora groaned.

Sitting up, she spat out the mouth full of sand she had collected. Her face was set in a grimace as she continued to try and get all the sand out of her mouth. Kairi offered his drink bottle and Sora smiled in thanks, wiping her mouth just as she realised something.

"Riku won again…" Sora sighed.

 _I'll beat him one day…!_

"Here."

Sora looked up to see Riku holding out his hand. Sora took it but paused as he spoke.

"You lost again Sora." Riku smirked.

So Sora pulled him down into the sand too.

"Riku, I'd like to introduce you to the sand too." Sora said seriously. "It's just dying to meet you!"

Kairi burst out laughed as Riku spat out a mouth full of sand, glaring at Sora. "Why you-"

Riku launched himself at Sora and they proceeded to have a wrestling match on the sand with Kairi cheering them both on.

Obviously, it ended when Sora proceeded to yelp as Riku locked his arm around her head, giving her a noogie.

"Oww! Riku!" Sora half growled, half laughed as Riku got up laughing.

"That's for the sand." Riku grinned. "Anyway, let's finish collecting the stuff to make the raft today."

The trio nodded and prepared to get back to work, the excitement giving them the boost they needed.

Sunset…

The three of them sat in silence as the sun began to set, a sense of nervousness through them all at the completion of the raft.

"This…This will be the second last sunset we'll watch together from Destiny Islands." Kairi said a little sadly.

"Yeah…" Sora nodded, feeling just as sad after all the memories they had spent here together. "But…We'll just have to make new ones in the other worlds! We'll still all be together and that's what matters!"

Riku and Kairi nodded, both smiling.

"Still, it's hard to imagine that we're really just one world that's a part of something much greater…" Riku said, looking out at the ocean for any signs of another world but finding none.

Kairi grinned. "That was very deep Riku."

Riku smirked. "What? Did you think I was Sora? Sorry, I'm not as tactless as she is."

Sora glared at Riku as he leaned on the tree casually as if he hadn't just insulted her. "Grr…!"

Kairi moved back from the tree he and Sora had been sitting on, knowing what was coming. "Hehe…You're so easily riled up."

This was proven when Sora launched herself at Riku. Riku apparently thought she wasn't that stupid to attack him when they were at the edge of the mini island. As such, just as Sora exclaimed in victory, Riku grabbed her in surprise as he began to fall and they both toppled over into the water.

Kairi laughed as he looked down to see them both in the water, all wet once again.

Riku just shook his head, pushing Sora slightly as they headed back to the sand bank.

Next day…

"Hey Riku?" Sora asked as they walked back from the race (that Sora just lost). "You've been thinking a lot lately…About the other worlds, right?"

Riku nodded. "Yeah. If Kairi hadn't come all those years ago…I probably wouldn't have ever thought this stuff."

"Yeah." Sora nodded. "Me either…"

Riku suddenly laughed a little. "Sora, by the way: I beat you. The raft's name will be 'Highwind'."

Sora stuck her tongue out at Riku, who laughed again. "Come on, let's go. The raft's complete."

Sora nodded, feeling excitement bubble inside her. "Yeah. We just need to get food and then we're all ready to set sail."

Kairi was by the raft, notepad in hand as he waited, the unspoken one deemed in charge of resource collecting. As Kairi took his studies seriously, Riku (who spent most of his time thinking about other worlds and only did the bare minimum) and Sora (who spent most of her times sleeping in class or 'forgetting' to do her homework), the job of what was necessary to bring along was left to Kairi.

Sora spent the rest of the day collecting the provisions Kairi listed off for her, frowning when she couldn't find one more mushroom.

 _Maybe I should look in the secret place…I mean, it's dark and damp enough…_

Shrugging, Sora quickly moved out of the bushes she'd been searching behind and made her way to the secret place, smiling as all the memories of when they were younger resurfaced.

 _I remember playing with Riku and Kairi…_

"A mushroom!" Sora grinned as she picked it up.

She paused as she looked at the Kairi drawing again and then the drawing of her (Riku had refused to draw with them and so his drawing was painfully absent). Now though…

 _We're all going to be leaving…It seems a pity to not include Riku in our drawings. After all, we're all best friends._

"Heh." Sora smiled as she saw how weird her drawing of Kairi was, wondering what Riku would think when he saw his one too.

 _I may not be a very good drawer but I think I can pull off his face…Maybe…_

A few minutes later…

Sora smiled as she finished drawing a very rough Riku (who had thick eyebrows and a scowl on his face).

Taking a look from further away, Sora actually laughed at the drawing of his face.

 _It looks nothing like him…Hmm…But we're missing something…Oh! The paopu fruit!_

Drawing nearly a full circle around the three faces of Riku, Kairi and herself, she drew a star in the middle that (partly) resembled a paopu fruit. It looked more like a shooting star than anything but…

 _Well, I never was good at drawing…_

Suddenly, Sora stiffened as she heard a rock move.

Quickly standing and turning around, she narrowed her eyes. "Who's there?!"

She was expecting one of the other kids on the island. She was prepared to tell them off because all the kids knew this was Riku's, Kairi's and her spot. She wasn't expecting a stranger though. He was dressed all in black and Sora felt a shiver run up her spine.

"I've come to see the door to this world." The man said, his voice deep.

Sora frowned. "What are you talking about? Who are you?!"

"This world has been connected." The cloaked man continued, ignoring Sora's question.

The man paused for a second. "Tied to the darkness…soon to be completely eclipsed."

 _What the heck's he talking about?_

But Sora couldn't help a wave of nervousness as the man talked.

"W-Whoever you are, stop freaking me out like this!" Sora shouted as she hesitantly took a step backwards.

But then she realised where the man was standing. He was near Sora's right, and the entrance was on her left…meaning he hadn't walked in from the entrance. Because she hadn't seen him when she entered earlier.

"W-Where did you come from?!" Sora asked nervously.

 _I don't like this…_

The man didn't say anything for a while and silence reigned for that time.

"You do not yet know what lies beyond the door." The man said and Sora frowned.

 _It's just like my dream… I can't open the door…whatever that is. Is he talking about the one in the secret place?_

Sora looked at the brown door with no handle, and then she gasped as she remembered he said he 'came to see the door to this world'.

 _He's implying he's seen other worlds!_

"Wait a minute! You're from another world!" Sora felt excitement rush inside her.

The man didn't seem to share Sora's enthusiasm.

"There is so very much to learn. You understand so little." The man said and Sora glared.

"Oh yeah?!" she shouted angry. "Well you'll see! I'm going to go learn what's out there!"

"A meaningless effort." The man said monotone. "One who knows nothing can understand nothing."

Sora glared at the stranger again but didn't dare go near him. He could be dangerous.

"Sora!"

Sora looked towards the entrance of the secret place where she heard Riku's voice shouting for her. "Are you in there?"

Turning back to the man, she blinked in surprise when she saw nobody there.

 _He's gone…_

"Hey Sora, you okay?" Riku asked as he came in. "Sora?"

"Hmm?" Sora snapped back to the present. "Yeah, I'm fine…I got the mushroom. Let's head back to Kairi…."

As they walked out of the secret place, Sora's eyes kept trailing back to the door and she wondered if the cloaked stranger would come back.

 _Maybe it was all my imagination…?_

With Kairi…

When Sora finally handed Kairi the mushroom, the three of them headed to the usual spot near the trees to watch the sunset.

"Tomorrow's the big day!" Kairi said excitedly as they made their way to the tree across the bridge. "Are you excited Sora?"

Sora nodded but her mind kept coming back to the stranger from earlier.

 _Was he really from another world? And if so, was that a sign that we're going to find a new world quicker than we thought?_

She was brought out of her thoughts when something was put around her wrist.

"Here." Kairi said as he adjusted the bracelet. "The sailors used to wear it. It's meant to ensure a safe voyage."

"We'll need it especially with your clumsiness." Riku snorted but Sora pretended not to hear that, turning to Kairi.

"Why don't you wear it?" she asked.

Kairi smiled innocently. "Because I don't want to! Besides, you look good in it and you know Riku would die before he wears jewellery that actually looks pretty."

"Of course." Riku snorted. "Any of your favourite jewellery, Kairi, is all 'pretty', 'girly' stuff."

"Hey, just because I'm a boy doesn't mean I can't wear a necklace or two." Kairi frowned, folding his arms.

Sora sighed and pulled it off her arm, putting it in Kairi's hand. "I agree with Riku though and you know I don't wear jewellery."

Kairi pouted but didn't try to put it on Sora again (because Sora was especially stubborn about things like that).

And then Riku announced to Kairi that he'd won the race and that the raft would be named 'Highwind', reminding Sora of something very important.

"Let's have a rematch!" Sora whined to Riku. "Come on! The raft's name is _so_ lame!"

Riku raised his eyebrows. "Says the loser. And anyway, are you sure you want to go another round?"

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean? You think I'll lose?!" Sora frowned, as she grabbed one of the paopu fruits from the tree they sat on. She threw it at Riku, who caught it quickly before it hit him.

"Come on Sora." Kairi grinned. "Riku's only teasing you."

"Is that the best you've got?" Riku raised his eyebrows in a challenge, completely ignoring what Kairi just said.

Sora glared back but just as she opened her mouth to speak, Kairi beat her to the punch.

"Hey, you guys know the actual legend behind the paopu fruit, right?" Kairi asked suddenly and Riku shrugged.

"Beats me." Riku shrugged and Kairi sighed.

"Don't you care?" Kairi asked and Sora looked between them, confused.

"Paopu fruits give us a wish, right?" Sora asked as she grabbed the fruit from Kari. "Didn't we already share one when we were younger to remain friends forever? Hmm…when you look at it now, it doesn't look like much. Looks like a starfish actually. Definitely not something that would grant wishes."

"Typical." Riku muttered as he snatched the fruit of out Sora's hands. "You're wrong, by the way."

"Hey! I was looking at that!" Sora glared.

"Well Sora, the paopu fruit doesn't actually grant wishes per say. They say that if you share this with a person, your souls become intertwined for eternity." Kairi smiled warmly. "We were kids back then so really didn't understand it and misinterpreted it."

"Oh…" Sora replied, looking at the fruit. "You know, I've completely forgotten what it tastes like."

"Obviously." Riku sighed. "We were, what? Eight or nine years old?"

"True." Kairi nodded just as Sora grinned.

"Great!" Sora smiled. "Let's share one! All three of us!"

"You do realise it's meant to be between two people?" Riku raised his eyebrows.

Sora smirked at both Riku and Kairi. "Yeah, I know. I have one brain-you and Kairi share the other. Two people, see?"

Riku snorted, even as Sora took a bite.

"It actually tastes pretty good!" Sora grinned as she took another bite.

"Really?" Kairi asked as Sora handed him one of the stair-points she broke off.

"Eh. It's not that bad." Riku said after Sora handed him a piece and he bit into it. "I suppose you'd better get used to losing all the time, now that you're stuck with me forever."

"What?!" Sora scowled. "I don't lose all the time-Okay…Well, maybe most of the time but…"

"Cheer up Sora." Kairi grinned as Sora stared morbidly at the ground. "You're still stuck with me forever! And-Hey, why are you pretending to look horrified?!"

Sora and Riku laughed at Kairi's insulted expression.

"Well, I suppose we're all going to be together forever." Sora smiled, just as Riku snorted.

"I don't believe in that childish stuff." He said, folding his arms.

Sora frowned. "So you don't want to be friends with us forever?"

Riku smiled at her. "What're you talking about Sora? Of course I do. Want to shove you off, that is."

Sora gave a cry as Riku pushed her off the tree into the water.

"Riku!" Sora shouted when she emerged from the water and saw him running towards the boats, laughing. "Get back here!"

Dripping wet, Sora ran up to Kairi who waited for her and they walked to the boats to go home and rest for tomorrow (with Sora plotting revenge against Riku, of course).

"Night all!" Kairi smiled as they got back to the main island before frowning at Sora. "Don't you dare sleep in Sora!"

"Don't worry Kairi." Riku grinned. "I'll make sure to collect Sora."

"Hey! I can wake up without you having to come, you know!" Sora huffed as Riku ruffled her hair and ran off laughing before she could get him back.

Sora shook her head before smiling to Kairi and heading back to the orphanage.

* * *

 **Me:** Next up: Traverse Town

 **Sora:** What do you mean by that...?

 **Kairi:**...So...ra...

 **Me:** Damn it, Kairi! Stop acting out the sce-I-I mean... Stop joking around!"


	6. Storm

**Me:** It begins! I'm sorry for taking so long to update. For some reason, my computer kept rejecting me... No idea what happened as it decided to fix itself when I checked this morning...

* * *

Sora sighed as she went to her room, wondering what her parents would think of her leaving Destiny Islands. Her mother had always been the one to encourage her to stay friends with Riku and Kairi, always finding new ways for the inseparable trio to spend time together.

Sora's father, on the other hand, had been more reserved and watching from afar, giving Sora the space she needed. He always seemed to have the answers to her questions and was always there when she needed to ask a question.

Their absence in her life was…weird.

She's spent all her time with them on Destiny Islands but once she left, she probably wouldn't see anything that reminded her of them for a long time.

 _But…I think they'd be happy because I'm going with my friends to search for answers and see amazing things!_

A small smile lit her face as Sora sat on her bed, staring up at the roof with her hands behind her head. The sounds of the other orphan children moving around their rooms and in the hallway alerted Sora to the fact that dinnertime was almost here.

 _The last time I'll eat with the rest of the orphans and the matron. This time tomorrow I'll be with Riku and Kairi halfway across the sea-maybe even at a new world!_

Kairi and Riku…They were the most important people in the world to her.

They were her world.

Sora jumped suddenly as a bang echoed through her room. Launching off her bed (and getting her feet tangled in the sheets), Sora groaned as she fell face first onto the floor.

But that was until she picked up the sound of the howling wind-the cause of her window being thrown open. Icy dread formed in her stomach as she stared out her window, knowing only one thing would be responsible for the current force of the wind.

Looking over at the play island outside her window, Sora sprung up quickly when she saw the dark clouds hovering over it. "The raft!"

Quickly jumping out the window like she and Riku had done so many times before, Sora ran as fast as she could towards the peer, getting in her one-man boat and quickly using the paddle to get to the play island.

 _Why a storm? Why tonight of all nights?!_

Of course, due to the storm, the waves were roaring and moving everywhere, meaning Sora was soaked to the bone by the time she got to the island.

Shivering slightly, Sora froze in alarm as she misinterpreted the clouds above the play island.

It wasn't a storm.

A huge vortex in the sky with a orange-yellow core and dark black-purple matter was swirling menacingly, changing Sora's plans, _especially_ when she saw Riku's and Kairi's boat on the play island too-meaning they were also here.

 _I have to find them and get away from here! Something is very wrong! We have to leave!_

Still soaking wet from the salt water, Sora felt her body completely ice over when she saw familiar yellow glowing eyes stare at her from the ground.

"It's…!" Sora gasped, taking a step backwards even as more of the creatures appeared and surrounded her. "Those monsters from my dream!"

 _I couldn't remember what they looked like at first but…These are definitely the same monsters I fought!_

Grabbing the wooden paddle from her boat, she yelped when the creatures seemed to not be affected at all and one managed to slash at her arm, drawing blood.

"Owie…" Sora winced as she grabbed her arm gingerly and took off through the island, shouting out for Riku or Kairi.

Adrenaline was fuelling her on yet because of the noise of the vortex in the sky, she knew she wouldn't be able to hear where her friends were. Of course, that meant she had to go exploring and so after hiding for refuge in the shack for a bit, she emerged up the stairs only to freeze in shock as she saw a familiar figure looking up at the sky at their usual spot on the mini island across the bridge.

"RIKU!" Sora shouted, though Riku didn't turn and Sora cursed the wind, running up to him and stopping only when he turned.

For a second, a jolt of fear had passed through her, as if she wasn't actually looking at Riku but at somebody else.

"R-Riku…?" Sora asked, surprised that it came out more a question that a statement.

"Sora." Riku smiled at her-though this wasn't his normal smile. This smile was one of cold indifferent, of excitement and a dark eagerness-shown through his eyes that seemed to glint with darkness. "Come with me."

He held out his hand and Sora hesitated, not even sure what was going on-or at least until the pool of darkness erupted under Riku and started getting higher and higher, starting to submerge him like flames.

 **Darkness is coming…**

"RIKU!" Sora shouted, reaching out her hand even as a pool of darkness appeared under her. "RIKU, WE HAVE TO FIND KAIRI-"

"Kairi's coming with us." Riku said, his face serious as he reached out his hand again. "Come Sora."

 **Different paths…**

"I…I can't reach!" Sora said desperately as she tried reaching him but the pool of darkness which was slowly making her sink prevented her from taking any steps forward to grab his hand.

Though, before she could see her best friend's reaction, the darkness covered her completely and she was once again floating in it, just like in her dream. Except this time, it wasn't a dream.

 **The journey begins…**

 _Riku…Kairi…I…Have to find them…_

 **Fear not the darkness.**

Sora's eyes snapped open as she heard the voice again, almost as if it was whispering into her ear. There was a shimmer of light and then something appeared in her hands.

 **For within you there lies the strongest weapon in the world.**

Sora looked down at the huge key-shaped thing in her hand.

"A key…" Sora titled her head. "No…A weapon? That's what the voice said…"

 **The Keyblade…The power that sleeps within you…**

"Key…blade…?" Sora said, just as the darkness surrounding her disappeared and Sora found herself in the secret place, despite being on the mini island before. "What…?"

Though her heart lurched in relief when she saw Kairi standing near the wooden door in the middle of the secret place.

 _Of course! That's the one place he'd be!_

"Kairi!" Sora grinned though she lost her smile when Kairi stared at her, eyes blank as he held out a hand as if to grab her.

"So…ra…" Kairi whispered, just as the wooden door opened upwards and a gust of dark purple air blew out and threw Kairi straight towards Sora.

"Kair-" Sora's voice was cut off as her arms, meant to have wrapped around Kairi as he reached her, wrapped around thin air instead.

Kairi had disappeared just as he'd touched her.

… _Kairi…?_

Landing painfully on the sand outside, Sora groaned as she got up only for her mouth to drop open in horror.

What was left of her island was an unrecognisable mess of a few stray palm trees here, a clump of sand hanging over there. The trees she used to sit on were gone, the play houses were gone-the vortex in the sky was sucking everything up!

Her friends were missing and all she had with her for protection was a giant key!

And then an ominous rumbling occurred behind Sora and she turned around, only to freeze as the same monster who was supposed to be her shadow appeared in front of her, looking even more intimidating then her dream one.

Quickly standing up, Sora barely managed to roll out of the way of an incoming fist. Of course, as soon as the monster's fist hit the ground, a purple pool of darkness appeared with more small creatures coming out of it and towards Sora.

Slicing upwards, Sora finished the first monster that attacked her before stabbing the next one but getting scratched by the third small monster. Stepping back a bit and wincing as the blood trickled down her other arm too, she quickly attacked but nearly dropped the keyblade in the process.

And then she saw more small monsters appear and she grimaced as she looked up at the huge monster, its glowing amber eyes locked on her.

 _I guess I have to defeat the big one to stop the smaller ones from coming…!_

Stepping back some more, Sora grimaced again as both her arms at the same time decided to throb with pain.

 _I…I don't think I can hold on for much longer…What would Riku do…? What would I do…?_

Then, it seemed to hit her in the face-or at least the thought to hit the monster in the face came upon her.

Grinning, Sora quickly shouted. "Hey ugly! You're face is wide open!"

Launching into the air (she's had a lot of practice because she did that to Riku all the time), Sora, in a downwards motion, slashed the big monster's face.

It took a few steps back, arms going to its face as Sora beamed in victory. But before she could even thing anything else, the monster was suddenly lifted into the air and swallowed by the vortex sucking it up.

Spinning around, Sora looked for the first thing to hold onto but her feel left the ground before she could grab the tree and she too, was sucked up into the menacing vortex, screaming her head off before she blacked out.

* * *

 **Me:** And there we have it! The journey begins! I would love comments because I am a comment-addict. Of course, I love seeing how many people favorite my story to so... *wink wink*


	7. Traverse Town

**Me:** Chapter today! If I get at least four more reviews within four hours, I'll post another chapter!

 **Sora:** *waves keyblade around in a cheering motion*

 **Kairi:** *waves Sora around in a stop-waving-you-idiot-motion*

 **Riku:** Mearad doesn't own Kingdom Hearts or any of its characters

* * *

Sometime later…

Sora was woken up by something wet on her face.

"Huh…?" Sora muttered as she opened her eyes tiredly, blinking a little as something orange-yellow covered her vision. "A….Dog…?"

Yawning a bit, Sora was about to go back to sleep when the 'dream dog' turned out to be an actual dog and jumped on her.

"WHAH!" Sora gasped as she grabbed its paws and it jumped back, panting happily. "This isn't a dream!"

Looking around, Sora's mouth dropped open as she saw she had been sleeping next to some barrels. She was in some type of alleyway and it seemed to still be night time as the stars in the sky glowed brightly.

"Say….Where am I?" Sora frowned, a little nervous as she didn't recognise _anywhere_ and this was all unfamiliar ground to her.

Looking down, she was also surprised to see that the yellow dog was gone.

"Well…that way's a dead end…" Sora muttered, looking behind her and then straight again. "The only way out seems to be this way…It's probably where the doggy went…"

Walking forward, Sora winced as she finally noticed her arms were still not healed-scabbing-yes, but not healed and quite painful.

"Owwie…How did I…?" Sora's eyes widened. "That's right! I fought that huge thing! And then I was eaten by the sky!"

Quickly breaking out in a run, Sora gasped as she finally got a good view of where she was-or rather, what _world_ she was in.

People she had never met, along with shops enclosed behind a wall and the only exit a huge door greeted her at a huge plaza. There was no sign of the usual tropical trees nor the cobbled sand below her feet. There was no smoke drifting from house chimneys nor the soft glow of fireflies on her island. There was no sounds of the seagulls nor the waves crashing against the rocks. There was no smell of sea salt nor the smell of freshly cooked fish.

"I'm…I'm in another world!" Sora gasped in amazement, excitement making her temporarily forget her painful arms.

Walking down the stairs, Sora was sure her mouth was hanging open as she stared at the glowing lights and all the people who were out talking. She could even see this really cute white creature with a red pom-pom on its head. She'd only seen one kid around her age but before Sora could go up to him, a woman came near her, smiling slightly.

"Oh, aren't you adorable?" the woman smiled (she had a _lot_ of makeup and perfume on-Sora could smell it and she was over a metre away!) as she came closer. "Why don't you come with me, dear? I'll get you patched up and then…Well, why don't you come and find out?"

The woman giggled as she put a hand under Sora's chin and Sora felt herself take a step back, scratching the back of her head nervously as she laughed a bit. "U-Um, no thanks! I'm fine!"

 _People in this new world are pretty weird…_

The woman giggled again but as she took a step closer, Sora's mouth opened in shock as the woman screamed because a creature similar to the ones Sora had faced on her island appeared. It stabbed the woman in the heart and actually grabbed her heart out, it's shinning glow drawing Sora's eyes to it instantly.

"Ah! She's disappearing!" Sora gasped, even as the screams of the other people alerted her to the fact that she should be going to.

The woman, who had been talking moments before, was indeed disappearing and as Sora turned to run, she got a good look at the monster that had taken the woman's heart.

It had some sort of chainmail armour, a weird cap and the same glowing yellow eyes that signalled it was the same as the other creatures Sora had fought. In fact, the same monsters from her island had appeared and were coming by the dozens along with more of the armoured ones.

People were panicking, diving into shop doors and dodging the weird creatures, terror and fear on their faces. Sora herself felt fear urge her on, the fact that these creatures had nearly killed her back on her island giving her the motivation she needed to get out of the way.

Quickly running into the closest shop she saw (which was back up the stairs), Sora panted in relief as the monster didn't seem to follow her inside.

 _So that's why everybody ran inside the shops…They don't enter…_

"Welcome to…Huh, a kid?"

Sora looked up, surprised she hadn't noticed the shop keeper earlier but then remembered she was still trying to make sure she was safe. A 30 something year old man with blonde hair scowled as he saw Sora. He had a cigarette hanging out of his mouth and Sora was more focused on how he was able to talk with it in his mouth rather than what he was saying.

"I'd say welcome to you but I don't think you're here for business. If so..Get out!"

 _I wonder if he had to practice to keep the toothpick from falling out of his mouth…Wait…_

The words finally registered.

Sora paled as she heard more screams from people outside. The doors started banging, as if the monsters were trying to come in. Putting her body against the door, sweat trickled down Sora's forehead as she tried pushing all her weight against the door so the monsters wouldn't break the door down.

Sora looked at the shop owner as if to ask him to reconsider kicking her out but it seemed she didn't have to. The shop owner's demeanour seemed to change instantly when he heard the monsters. He picked up something from under the counter, scoffing as he seemed to confirm monsters were really outside attacking people.

"They hitting the streets again?!" the man cursed, walking towards the door that Sora was struggling to keep closed.

"Wait, you can't-" Sora panicked but one look from the man and she stepped aside (the shop owner's glare was worse than the teachers back on destiny Islands when she and her friends had been caught skipping school).

The man kicked open the door with his foot, making Sora sweat drop.

 _So I've been pushing against a door that opens outwards? And I could've left the door alone and those monsters wouldn't have been able to get in…Whoops…_

And then Sora was able to witness something amazing. As soon as the old guy had kicked the door open, before the creatures could enter (Sora had seen the yellow eyes as the monsters tried to come in), the old guy used the huge machine gun in his hands to blast the creatures away.

"QUIT FRICKIN' OBSTRUCTING MY BUSINESS!" the old man shouted.

The heat from the gun was impressive, as back on the island Sora had only felt intense heat like this whilst she'd visited the forge shop with her father once when she was younger.

 _That has to be a pretty awesome weapon…_

"Amazing!" Sora grinned as the man smirked and came back in.

 _I want one of those! They're better than the guns in the games Riku and I play!_

The man walked back to his counter, placing the weapon back under the counter.

"Now then…" the man turned to her, assessing her. "Haven't seen you around here before, kid. Where ya' from?"

Sora glared at the old man. "My name's not 'kid'! My name's Sora!"

 _Why does everyone call me a kid?!_

The man smirked. "Hoho, nice to meet you too, Sora."

Sora scowled some more before she remembered the monsters. "What…What were those things?"

The man lost his smirk, frowning as he quickly looked at the door the monsters had been attacking.

"They're called heartless." The (old-in Sora's opinion) man said. "They eat out the hearts of people. Used to be that you didn't see them wandering around the first district much but…Pay attention when I'm talking, damn it!"

Sora looked up from the crystal she had been admiring, turning to the old man with a scowl. "I _was_ listening! But I don't care why they're here! I just want to find my friends! Riku…Kairi…"

"This here's the city they call Traverse Town." The man sighed. "Home to all those who've lost their homes…"

"Lost…Their homes…?" Sora mumbled faintly, turning her head to the floor. "That…Can't be…Me n' my friends were having fun just yesterday! That can't be true!"

"Fraid' so." The man sighed.

 _It can't be…Yet…that huge whole in the sky sucked up my island….Everything was being taken away into it…_

Sora clenched her fists, shaking with grief. She'd never be able to return with her friends back to the island…She'd never be able to visit the places where she'd shared memories with her parents…

Sure, she'd wanted to find other worlds and leave her island but….that didn't mean she'd wanted it destroyed! And she'd even agreed with Kairi that they could come back if they wanted to!

 _I guess we can't…But…Where are Riku and Kairi…?_

"Um…Where would my friends be…?" Sora frowned, looking back up at the man who had been watching her as she'd thought.

"If you're friends are still ticking, they're gonna' be around here somewhere." The man wiped his nose, as if he was unused to comforting a kid. "Go look for them, why don'tcha?"

Handing her a dumpling, the man in his thirties told her to keep her strength up and to come back to him for help if she ran into any trouble.

"Okay…" Sora nodded sadly, grabbing the partly eaten dumpling (she was too hungry to complain) before wincing again as her arms throbbed again. "Owie…"

"Hmm?" the man peered at her arms before heading to his cupboard. "The heartless got ya, did they? Here kid, drink this."

Sora nodded, taking the green drink and sculling, gasping when the slashes on her arm disappeared completely. "Wow, what was that?!"

" _That_ is a potion." The man said before nodding to the food still in her hands. "Eat that and go find your friends."

Sora nodded, wiping her tears and smiling a watery smile at him. "Thanks gramps!"

 _This is no time to cry! I have to find Riku and Kairi!_

"My name's CID!" the shop keeper shouted as Sora exited the store, excitement bubbling inside her.

 _Riku, Kairi…! Just you wait! I'll find you both!_

Exiting the store, Sora started asking around if anybody had seen her friends, though the answers were far from positive. A lot of people had been split from their friends and families and there was only one case in all of Traverse Town where people from the same world came together.

Sora decided to change tactics and look for a man called Leon or a girl called Yuffie to ask them how they had come to the same world and where they had found each other after arriving in Traverse Town (maybe she'd find Riku and Kairi in the same place they first found themselves in!).

And so, heading to the second district, Sora was all intent on finding these mysterious people when she saw two puppies rolling around on the ground.

She lost it.

"PUPPIES!" Sora squealed, quickly running to them as the puppies lapped up the attention and started wagging their tails furiously. "They're so cute! Haha!"

The puppies both had a blue collar on. They were white with black dots-Dalmatians, if Sora remembered correctly from animal class back two years ago.

Just then, heartless appeared and Sora tensed up, surprised when the key weapon (or was it called a keyblade?) appeared in her hand. It seemed to warm in her hands and Sora had to sudden urge to stay and fight instead of run like back in the episode in the first district.

 _Well…I did manage to beat up a whole lot on my island…_

"Alright…!" Sora glared as the puppies whimpered behind her. "If I could defeat you things with this key before, I'm definitely not going to allow you to hurt the puppies…or me!"

With that, Sora launched forward and attacked.

The heartless were defeated quickly with a few hits, the puppies barking and distracting the heartless a few times which gave Sora openings to attack from. Breathing heavily, Sora jumped as the keyblade disappeared from her hands.

 _Hmm…I guess all I need to do is think 'I don't need it right now' and it disappears…This is kinda' cool, I guess. I have a weapon I can call on anytime…_

The puppies led Sora through the second district (Sora had seen a sign stating where she was) and towards a house with a blue door. A label on the door said 'Dalmatian's House'.

 _This must be where the puppies live…_

Entering the warm house, Sora was surprised when two adult dogs (one wearing a blue collar and one wearing a red collar) nudged a note towards her. Picking up the note, Sora's eyes widened as she read it.

 _ **Please help us find out children. They have been scattered all over the worlds. If you find any, we'll give you a reward.**_

Sora frowned, looking at the nine puppies in the room out of the whole 99 puppies that were meant to be there. It seemed, even though they all came from the same world, the puppies had been scattered across many others when they lost their worlds.

 _So…Riku and Kairi might not be here after all…Just like some of the Dalmatian puppies…_

Biting her lip, Sora sighed. "I hope you two are okay…You'll just have to wait a bit longer then if you aren't in Traverse Town!"

Because if they weren't here, she'd go looking in the other worlds. And this was obviously possible, as some of the puppies had been returned from other worlds. But first, she had to look to see if her friends _were_ in Traverse Town.

Summoning her key encase any more heartless decided to attack her (seriously, it was like they were _fixated_ on her or something), she walked out the Dalmatian's home and back into the second district (after saying goodbye to the puppies and promising she'd keep an eye out for the rest of the litter).

Smiling happily, she laughed a bit at imagining Riku's reaction to her logical planning when she was on her own in a completely new world.

 _See Riku…Even without you here, I can think smartly!_

Of course, she failed to notice the man in leather clothes come up behind her until it was too late.

"Huh?" Sora turned around, surprised to see a brown haired man with a very noticeable scar across his face. "Who're you?"

"They'll come at you out of nowhere…" the man said, raising his weapon (some type of gun or sword or something?). "I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to ask you to take a nap."

"E-Eh..?" Sora gasped as the guy disappeared from in front of her.

There was a pain at the back of her neck and she felt her eyes close involuntarily.

 _Okay Riku, maybe I don't think all that smartly…_

* * *

 **Me:** If anybody wants to give suggestions, I'm all ears!

 **Riku: Can you hear me?**

 **Me:** What?

 **Sora:** *points finger triumphantly* HAH! You aren't all ears! You couldn't even hear Riku!

 **Me:**...Whatever. what do people think? It's pretty obvious but... WHO ON EARTH... or Traverse Town... DID SORA JUST MEET?!


	8. Squeak and Yuffie

**Me:** As some of you may have noticed, my story does and will in future show similarities to the manga (ps. those who haven't read it-DO IT!). Anyhow, thank you to everybody who has reviewed, clicked it as a favorite or followed my story! It gives me motivation to keep getting better!

Questions: 

**Me to Mana:** Basically, Kairi's body is roaming around in darkness right now and I'm sure we all know where his heart is. As for the circumstances behind Kairi losing his heart... _that_ is another story entirely.

 **Me to Shiranai Atsune:** In this story, Kairi won't but Kingdom Hearts II story... I'm seriously considering Kairi having his own adventure. You might understand why as this story goes on.

* * *

 _ **Hey…**_

Sora groaned as she sat. Though she didn't seem injured, Sora did have a mild headache.

"Are you okay, lazy bum?"

Sora looked up, her heart almost stopping when she saw Kairi's amused face grinning down at her. "…Kairi…?"

 _He's okay!_

'Kairi' blinked. "Kairi? Who are you talking about? The name's Yuffie! The best ninja ever!"

Sora frowned, just as Kairi's amused face disappeared to make way for a girl with black hair instead. "Oh…Sorry…"

Sora admitted, the girl did have the same hair style as Kairi did but still didn't look enough like Kairi to warrant a mistake like that. Sighing, Sora yawned again and rubbed the back of her head. She must be really tired to make a mistake like that.

"Ow…" Sora winced as her hand brushed against a tender spot near the back of her neck and Yuffie (was that what she called herself?) turned to face another person.

"I thought you said you were going to go easy on her! Did you give her a concussion, Squall?"

"That's Leon." A gruff voice sighed as footsteps alerted Sora he was coming closer.

Looking up, Sora was surprised to find herself in a red coloured room. Literally. The walls were barely yellow, most of it covered with red swirls. The couch and bed was red and even the ceiling was red.

Of course, the stark differences was the brown wooden floor and the people within them. The seventeen or eighteen year old girl called Yuffie wore a variety of yellow, blue and green. The guy (Squeak or something) wore leather clothes and a huge bunch of belts.

Sora looked between them, coming up with a blank.

 _Where the heck am I?_

"Who are you..?" Sora asked instead, more intrigued with the people then the room (which was making her headache worse because of the alarming amount of red).

The last thing she remembered was leaving the Dalmatian's house…And something about the heartless following her because of the keyblade or something…

"Hey, weren't you listening?!" Yuffie exclaimed. "I'm the great ninja, Yuffie! And he's-"

"Leon." The guy cut her off, a scowl once more on his face as he turned to Sora. "Anyway, as you wield the keyblade, the heartless will stop at nothing to take your heart."

"My heart?" Sora sat up, startled. "Why?!"

"The keyblade." Yuffie smiled. "The heartless are seeking it as we speak."

"In order to keep them from finding you, we'll have to hide the presence of your 'heart'." Leon said and Sora frowned, not really understanding. "But I still can't believe a kid, of all people…"

"Mister, what do you mean-" Sora began (she thought it would be best to be polite and was too confused to pick up on the fact he called her a kid) but was cut off by a loud boom. "What was that?!"

"Crap! Looks like they got a whiff of the key! Yuffie, go!" Leon ordered, drawing his weapon again and looking at Sora, who just continued to sit confused. "Sorry, there's no time to explain!"

Yuffie ran out the door and Sora quickly turned to Leon, not wanting to be left behind (come to think of it, was he the guy who came with other people from the same world? He _was_ called Leon and that girl _was_ called Yuffie…)

Anyhow, Sora's thoughts were brought back to the present as Leon paused on the balcony outside an alleyway.

"There's a lot of them…" Leon scowled. "Behaviour's coherent too. There's something coordinating their actions…"

Sora looked at him, trying to understand the situation but ironically enough, apart from being a little worried about the heartless, her stomach was distracting her the most.

 _So hungry…._

"Don't bother with the small fry." Leon said, bringing her out of her thoughts, swinging his weapon downwards and glaring. "Let's go!"

 _So somebody's ordering the heartless around? Sort of like the games me and Riku play where the big boss guy orders the smaller ones around…Wait…Did he just…?_

"B-But!" Sora began but her mouth dropped open when she saw Leon was already way in front of her, having taken out all the heartless in the way.

 _He wants me to fight the heartless and stop them?!_

"W-Wait up!" Sora panicked, quickly running and following the strange guy towards the first district, taking down the occasional heartless that showed up just as Leon passed them.

 _Man, I'm so confused…I have no idea what's happening! I'll just follow and attack the heartless!_

Finally finding Leon in the first district, she gasped as the heartless were blocking people off from escaping inside houses to safety, using carefully formulated traps to keep the people cornered.

 _This is what he meant by the heartless are being coordinated! They never did this earlier! They just attacked randomly and people were able to dodge and get to safety…_

Without a second thought, Sora knew she wanted to help people escape and jumped as her keyblade appeared in her hand. "Oh man, that still surprises me…"

And then she remembered she shouldn't be wasting time and she jumped into the battle, swinging her keyblade at the heartless and whacking them upside the head, slashing at them and sending them either into nothingness (they disappeared) or back a few metres until they came back for more.

She could hear Leon fighting as well and as Sora swung again, she was surprised by the fact that she hadn't got hit ye-Okay, she changed her mind.

Sora groaned as she fell to the ground, a spasm going through her as she felt like she was being electrocuted.

Opening her eyes weakly, she dimly thought _huh, I_ _ **am**_ _being electrocuted…_.

"Hold on kid!" Cid's voice broke through to her mind's haziness.

An intense heat came near her and hands grabbed her shoulders, pulling her up into a sitting position.

 _What…? Who…?_

"Here kid." Cid's voice finally helped her figure out who was next to her.

There was a sort of shattering and Sora felt something sprinkle and tingle all over her and suddenly, the noise was back full force, the dazedness gone and she was alert and staring into Cid's face.

"You still with us, kid?" Cid asked grimly, his cigarette still in his mouth, though unlit this time.

Sora mumbled something and Cid frowned, not quite catching her.

"…Name's…Sora…Remember…?" Sora mumbled, getting up but finding herself pretty exhausted.

"Haha, you're fine." Cid grinned before looking around the first district, where Leon was continuing to fight heartless as they kept appearing. "Come on Sora, inside the shop."

Sora nodded, surprised to find how tired she was.

 _But then again, I had been electrocuted…I think…How am I still alive, anyway?_

She must've asked that out loud as they entered Cid's shop, for Cid grinned at her and handed her two green bottles. "They're called potions. Remember? Treated your arms with one earlier. Nifty things, ain't they? Anyway, stay here. I'm going to help Leon."

Sora nodded, struggling to keep her eyes open as Cid left.

"Here kupo."

Suddenly Sora was no longer sleepy-in fact, she felt _refreshed_ as if she had the best snooze like back on her island when she slept in the sun. Looking at the creature that gave her…whatever it was that helped her, she smiled.

"Ethers give you back some of your energy, kupo." The thing said. "Ah, you seem curious. I am a moogle, kupo. If you ever want any ethers, just come to me. They don't cost too much, kupo."

Sora nodded, still hearing the occasional scream outside and bitting her lip in worry as the minutes wore on.

"…Maybe they need my help?" Sora muttered, frowning as the sounds of fighting didn't seem like they were stopping anytime soon.

 _I feel fine now, after all…I'll stay close to the shop, just in case!_

With that, Sora ran outside, ready to help once more.

The heartless that were attacking were still the same varieties-the normal small black ones (Sora was guessing they were the most common because of how many times she has seen them) and the slightly bigger armoured ones.

It was as she saw both Leon and Yuffie fighting in the first district with Cid that a horrible thought struck her.

 _What if the people in the other districts aren't being protected? I know the Alleyway is safe but I haven't checked the second district and I'm pretty sure I overheard somebody talking about a third district too…_

With that, Sora quickly ran through the crowd of attacking heartless, rushing towards the second district to help out (though nobody was about and there was only heartless).

"Take that!" Sora shouted as she swung downwards and cut into an armoured heartless, making it disappear in black smoke. "Damn…These things are everywhere!"

She had barely arrived in the second district when she was assaulted by a bunch of heartless. Jumping down into the fountain, Sora hardly noticed the water soaking her shoes and socks. Instead, she continued to run through the area, checking to make sure there were no people out and about that may have needed her help.

Thankfully, as she battled her way through heartless, everybody seemed to have the sense to have already gotten to safety. That or they already had their hearts taken.

 _Stop Sora! O can't think morbid thoughts!_

She had just stepped into the third district when she felt unease claw at her. No heartless had appeared yet which was unusual, considering the fact that they had been swarming everywhere before.

But then she scowled and clenched her keyblade tightly, running down the stairs and into the middle of the third district.

 _I'm not afraid! Heartless are nothing! I should just think of them like I'm playing a game!_

"WHAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Sora jumped as an explosion blasted through the air. From the top corner of her eye, fire flickered into existence and two figures started falling straight below from a balcony…to where she was standing.

 _Move! Move! Move-Argh…too late…_

Sora groaned as the two strangers fell on top of her, winding her and preventing her from moving.

 _It's bad enough when Riku sits on me…_

"The key!" two (one distinguishably croaky) voices shouted in union.

The two strangers got off her and Sora blinked as she stared at a duck (who was holding a staff) and a dog (who was holding a shield and seemed to be some sort of knight judging by the way he looked).

 _Wait, they said 'key'…Are they looking for-_

Sora's thoughts halted as the ground started vibrating as a huge purple armour piece fell from somewhere above. Followed by more parts (and yes, the floor was still shaking), the armoured heartless (the eyes gave it away) formed fully and quickly smashed its hands in their direction.

"WHA!" Sora gasped as she jumped back, her reflexes as being the second best fighter on the play island being the one thing that saved her.

"Careful!" the duck croaked out and a second later, a feeling much like the potion Cid used on her came over her.

"Donald will heal ya' up!" the dog guy smiled as the three of them stood together in front of the purple armoured heartless.

"Right! Thanks!" Sora said, though a scowl was directed at the heartless. "Grr…! I'm not going to let you hurt anyone, you stupid piece of junk!"

And so, Sora's hotheadedness stimulated her in launching an attack at the armoured heartless.

Running forward, Sora slashed downwards, gritting her teeth when a tremor went through her hands as the keyblade smashed into the armoured heartless. Though her mouth dropped open as the armoured heartless didn't even seem to be affected by her attack except for a small dint in its armour.

 _w-what?!_

"Look out!" the duck shouted as the heartless's arm smashed into her shoulder, sending her crashing to the ground a few metres away.

Sora's ears were ringing as her head made contact with the ground but before she could fall into unconsciousness, the duck healed her once again.

"Let's attack it together!" the dog smiled at her.

Sora nodded, keeping her thoughts hidden as she charged with the dog.

If it's not affected by our attacks though…

And then the dog jumped down on one of the arms that had tried to hit him. His shield was backed by the force of his body as he literally crushed the armoured arm.

The arm disappeared.

"Y-You did it!" Sora gasped out and the dog smiled bashfully.

 _Oh! I get it! If we dint it enough, the armour will break! That's how we defeat this huge heartless!_

A smirk came onto her face as she ran forward to meet the heartless's attack.

After Fight:

"I actually defeated it! I'm so gonna' brag about this to Riku!" Sora threw her hands up into the air in victory, before wincing slightly.

"Careful!" the duck shouted again, coming towards her.

"Gawrsh, are you okay?" the other person looked at her.

"Yeah…So you guys have been looking for me? Or at least the key?" Sora asked as the duck healed her with his magic, raising an eyebrow at the strangers.

 _They mentioned the 'key' before the huge armoured heartless appeared…_

The duck and the dog nodded, and all three of them turned to the new voice who spoke.

"They too, have been seeking the wielder of the keyblade." Leon and Yuffie walked up to them and Sora with a jolt, remembered all the people in the first district.

"Is the first district safe?" Sora asked quickly and Yuffie laughed a little.

"Yep! When you defeated the big boss, the heartless scattered! Traverse Town should be safe for a while thanks to you!"

Sora sighed in relief. "That's great then…"

 _At least there's no more heartless…I don't want them following me everywhere or attacking people!_

"Hey, why don't you come with us?" the funny looking dog said. "We can go to other worlds on our vessel!"

 _Other worlds…! How cool…_

But Sora suppressed her excitement at realising what she had to do first. "I can't. I've got to find my friends…"

 _If they're even on this world…I mean, I_ _ **did**_ _just search through all three districts…_

"Sora, if you want a chance of finding your friends, you should go with them." Leon said to Sora, who still looked unsure.

She frowned and looked around the third district, as if hoping Riku or Kairi would appear and shout 'surprise'.

"Squall (My name is Leon!) is right." Yuffie nodded. "You've been searching for your friends all day. They're most likely not in this world."

Sora slumped dejectedly before turning hopefully to the two strangers. "So can I look for my friends on the other worlds?"

"Of course!" the duck said instantly and Sora released a breath she hadn't realised she'd been holding as the duck mumbled something to his companion.

 _Riku, Kairi…I'll find you both._

"But you can't come along looking like that! Understand?" the duck said, pointing at Sora's sad face. "No frowning! No sad faces, okay? The ship runs on happy faces!"

"Yeah!" the other said. "You gotta' look funny-like us!"

 _Oh…I guess so…_

Sora put her face down and the two strangers awaited for her face.

 _Okay…Here goes!_

Showing all of her teeth, her face was split into a huge smile and she looked at them for approval.

 _My mouth is starting to hurt…_

But it seemed to get the desired effect as the both of them burst out laughing followed by Sora herself.

"I'll go with you guys!" Sora laughed, holding out her hand.

"Donald Duck." The duck said.

"The name's Goofy!" the other one smiled.

Sora laughed again, smiling brightly. "And I'm Sora."

The three of them put out their hands in the middle of their group.

"All for one and one for all!" Goofy said and Sora smiled.

"Great!" Yuffie smiled at them and came closer. "I see you three are going to become great friends in your future adventures!"

Sora laughed bashfully as Yuffie slung a hand around her neck, before yawning tiredly.

"Adventures can wait." Leon said, turning around. "You three should get some rest. There's a spare room at the inn for you three to use."

Sora yawned again as Yuffie walked ahead with Leon. Looking back at Donald and Goofy, she shrugged before they all followed Leon and Yuffie to the inn.

 _I can't wait for some food though…So hungry…I wonder if they have ice cream on this world?_

* * *

 **Me:** As we can all see, Sora fails to really see the danger of everything yet! But rest assured, she'll get smarter... Probably...

 **Sora:** T_T thanks a lot!

 **Kairi:** What world is Sora going to go to first?

 **Me:** *grins evilly* Me to know and you to find out... or guess. Take your pick.

 **Riku:** Did you know the manga version of Sora pulling a 'funny face' at Donald and Goofy is so amusing I was in hysterics for five minutes? And I'm the _cool_ one!

 **By the way, the fight scene with the boss heartless in this chapter is not described because... Meh, I really didn't like writing this fight scene. But every battle afterwards is described so don't be too disappointed about this one.**


	9. Your Goals and Mine

**Me:** Okay guys! This chapter is more Donald, Goofy and Sora getting to know one another (as well as the residents of the gummi ship)! I **will post** the **next** chapter later today (because I consider this as only 'half' a chapter) and not the chapter I promised.

 **Kairi:** Okay! Sora drools cereal everywhere in this chapter but-

 **Sora:** Kairi! Don't tell them that! Mearad doesn't own Kingdom Hearts or any of its characters so just ignore what Kairi said-

 **Me:** Moving on!

* * *

The room Sora, Donald and Goofy were in had dark blue walls with brown swirling lines. It looked much like its red counterpart. There were three beds that came with (in Sora's opinion) very uncomfortable pillows (All throughout the night Sora found it very uncomfortable to sleep on it).

The next day…

Sora was woken up by Donald and she blinked the haziness out of her mind before staring at them. There was an awkward silence as Sora looked at Donald and Goofy, unsure of what to say to these two who would help her travel over the worlds to find her friends.

"…So…what're you guys going all over the worlds for?" Sora asked Donald and Goofy, breaking the silence.

"We're looking for the king!" Donald said as he packed some potions in his bag. "He said we need to stick with the key, which is you, so you're going to help us find the king."

Sora nodded, lying on her bed to stare up at the roof of her room.

 _So long as I can search for Riku and Kairi, I don't mind helping them search for their king either…I mean, helping people is always a good thing…And not to mention, I'll get to explore other worlds too…_

"So why's your king missing anyway?" Sora asked, looking back at the duck (Goofy seemed more inclined to just watch and comment occasionally). "Did your world get destroyed too?"

"No!" Donald looked highly affronted. "As if our world would! The king is in charge of keeping balance between the worlds but lots of worlds have been disappearing-like your own."

"Really?" Sora asked, alarmed.

 _So it wasn't normal to lose your world?_

"Yeah." Donald nodded, pausing as he contemplated putting another potion in his bag (it was full already) before handing it to Sora. "Here, put it in your pocket. Anyway, the king went on a journey to find out what's wrong and he ordered us to find you and stick with you. You're apparently the key to everyone's survival."

Sora's eyes widened and she summoned the keyblade, looking at it for any signs of the 'super-awesome-I-can-beat-you-all-and-save-everyone' aura.

It just continued to look like an oversized key.

One that could beat heartless up anyway.

"Really?" Sora asked slightly doubtful.

But…it did _sound_ kind of fun and cool, so she might as well stick with it! And if it meant protecting Riku and Kairi, of course she'd help (whether she truly believed the key was that awesome or not was another story).

"Yes. And no looking like that!" Donald reminded her. "The ship runs on happy faces!"

 _That's a silly phrase…_

"So we're using a ship to get to other worlds?" Sora asked curiously as she hopped off the bed (her stomach demanded attention).

"Yep. The gummi ship!" Goofy smiled.

"Great!" Sora beamed before heading to the door. "I'm hungry! Can we get some food now?"

"Just a second, kid." Donald halted her. "We'll be visiting other worlds and you need to follow the Laws of non-interference."

"laws of wha…?" Sora sweat dropped.

 _It's like I'm back in school…_

"Non-interference." Donald huffed, folding his arms as the three of them walked out the room and into the hallway. "Just don't tell anyone we're from another world."

As they walked into the kitchen, they were greeted by Leon, Yuffie and a woman with soft brown hair wearing a pink dress.

Turning to Donald, Sora frowned. "Why can't we say that we're from another world?"

Goofy spoke up this time, scratching the back of his head as he tried to remember. "To…preserve the borders of the worlds….? Ahyuk!"

Donald twitched. "That's ORDERS! Preserve the _orders_ of the worlds!"

"What about Traverse Town?" Sora frowned. "Leon and Yuffie know about other worlds!"

"That's because we lost our world." Leon frowned, interrupting the conversation before Donald could speak.

"I see…" Sora frowned again before shrugging, not really getting what was wrong with other worlds knowing about each other. Oh well, she'd follow the rules anyway.

"So we've got to preserve the world orders!" Donald concluded, nodding his head just as Leon put down his mug of coffee.

"The orders of the worlds you are trying to preserve have been thrown into chaos from the heartless." Leon said as Yuffie grinned and handed Sora a donut (yumm…).

 _The heartless are causing chaos by destroying the world orders?_

Taking a bite of said donut (chocolate flavour), Sora swallowed before asking more questions. "Wait-so the heartless are telling everyone about other worlds?! I thought they were destroying them…And when could heartless speak anyway?"

"You've got it wrong." The woman in the pink dress smiled at Sora. "Wherever the heartless pass, there is only ruin. As such, the world orders are thrown into chaos because of the appearance of heartless."

"Oh…" Sora nodded, sitting down in a seat as she finished her donut. "That makes sense! But…What exactly are the heartless? I know they want to eat hearts and the keyblade but…"

"They don't want to eat the keyblade…" Leon sighed. "They fear the keyblade so they want to take your heart."

"And the heartless are obviously without hearts!" Yuffie grinned, handing Sora a bowl and some cereal. "Here you go."

 _Awesome! Yuffie can totally read my mind!_

"Thanks!" Sora smiled but frowned as she looked out the window. "It's night time already?"

 _I slept for the whole day…?_

"Traverse Town doesn't have daylight." The woman supplied helpfully and Sora nodded, surprise etched onto her face.

"Wow…" Sora looked at the sky though there was nothing different from her own night sky at Destiny Islands. "Anyway…Um, who're you?"

"This kid is tactless…" Donald muttered as Goofy chuckled a bit.

The woman smiled. "I was wondering when you'd ask. My name is Aerith. You are Sora, correct?"

"Yeah!" Sora beamed as she poured some milk in the bowl of cereal before looking at Donald again. "So why'd your king leave anyway?"

"We believe he went to find a man called Ansem." Aerith cut it. "Either him or his reports."

When Sora just looked confused, Leon elaborated. "He documented the behaviour of the heartless."

"So…?" Sora asked, tilting her head in confusion.

"We don't know much about them but the answer is probably within the reports." Yuffie said.

"I see!" Sora nodded, taking another spoonful of cereal.

"The only problem is the pages are scattered all over the worlds…" Yuffie sighed.

"So that's why your king left!" Sora's eyes widened as the pieces fell together (and admittedly, some cereal fell out of her mouth). "Maybe if we find your king, he could tell us if he's seen my friends too!"

"Meh, it's worth a try." Yuffie shrugged. "Though I doubt he will even know who your friends are…"

"Still, when you go-be careful out there." Leon frowned (though Sora was beginning to think this was his normal face). "Heartless feed on the darkness of one's heart. See to it that you don't fall prey…"

A heavy silence followed Leon's words of warning before Aerith handed them some wrapped sandwiches. "Good luck on your search. Come back for a meal or two and some rest."

"Hmph. If we have time." Donald said before leading the way to their ship (at least Sora remembered the duck saying they had a ship or something…).

"See you guys!" Sora grinned and waved before running to catch up with Donald and Goofy. "So what're other worlds like?!"

"SHHH!" Donald whispered furiously as he looked around, eyes narrowed before directing a glare on Sora. "Remember, the other worlds are a secret!"

 _But we're in Traverse Town…Everybody who's lost their homes would obviously know other worlds exist too…_

"Err…Right." Sora sweat dropped a little as she spoke quieter. "So…What're they like?!"

Donald sighed. "We don't know. We've only ever been on our own world. This is the first time the king's given us orders to go to other worlds."

"Ehh, really?" Sora asked surprised. "Why didn't you go yourselves?"

"What do ya' mean, Sora?" Goofy asked, titling his head in confusion.

"Well…Me, Riku and Kairi, we were all planning on going to visit a whole bunch of worlds!" Sora admitted. "It's why I'm so excited too! I mean, we've always wanted to explore them! I don't get how you could just _stay_ on one world and not visit other worlds!"

"It's effing locked!" Donald croaked, seemingly not having been listening as he turned to Goofy. "Give me the keys, Goofy."

Sora paused in front of what appeared to be a bright green, red and yellow spaceship. It was small, maybe holding enough room for three people to sit in the ship seats. There seemed to be two engine shooters at the back of the spaceship and Sora could almost feel her hands twitching at the thought of driving a spaceship.

 _I bet driving the real thing is much more different that steering it on a gaming console!_

Sora jumped as the door suddenly swung open, allowing them entry into the side of the ship. Peering inside, Sora blinked as she saw a small hallway with around two circular windows and a very clean floor. Following Donald and Goofy inside, it seemed she couldn't contain her awe because Donald chuckled and smiled knowingly at her.

"Welcome to the gummi ship."

"W-Wow!" Sora gushed, quickly running to the windows. "Do they open?! Is that a secret compartment?! What's with all those buttons?!"

Heading to what seemed to be a small trapdoor under the floor, she opened it, finding a stash of snacks. Closing it again, she was just about to head to the front of the ship where the buttons were when something slapped her hand.

"Ow…" Sora mumbled, quickly snatching her hand back before looking down as she heard a high pitched voice.

"We've just spent ages cleaning up!" a squirrel creature yelled at her. "I won't have to pressing your fingertips on every part of the ship surface!"

"Oh…Sorry…" Sora mumbled, ashamed as she looked down at her feet.

"Gwarsh, Sora's awful sorry." Goofy said to the chipmunk (Sora finally figured out what they were-thank you, Destiny Islands Species Detection class, you're useful after all).

"Honestly, kids these days…Think they own everything…." The chipmunk muttered before nodding and hopping on Sora's shoulder to the window to clean the now clearly evident finger marks. "Apology accepted. Just don't do it again."

Sora nodded, curiously watching as the other chipmunk also jumped on her shoulder but paused to speak to her.

"We take care of the ship maintenance." The creature clarified, his squeaky voice being surprisingly easy to understand. "See ya! Oh yeah! You better take your shoes off before entering. Chip will get mad if you dirty the cockpit floor!"

Sora nodded, following Goofy's example and putting her shoes down on the floor.

"That's Chip and Dale." Donald said as he walked past her to the front of the ship to the middle seat. "Anyway, get your seat belt on. We'll be leaving shortly."

Sora nodded, a mixture of nerves and hope swarming within her.

 _I'll find you both soon…Just wait a little bit longer!_

"Good day, miss."

Sora looked to her left, surprised to see a cricket on her shoulder. "Who're you?"

"Jiminy Cricket at your service." The cricket smiled. "I'll be with you on your journey, documenting everything that happens in my trusty journal."

"Oh!" Sora smiled as she saw his very small journal. "That's so cool! It's like, even if it's stolen, because it's so small, nobody else can read it, right?! OWW…."

Chip, it seemed, had come back and whacked her across the head. "Manners, kid. You're too tactless. Don't go around calling people _small_ "

 _But I called the book small…I didn't…_

"No, now, it's fine." Jiminy smiled. "I'm glad you speak your mind to me. And Sora was talking about the book, Chip. Anyway, I hope we have a great journey together."

Sore smiled, just as Goofy buckled up his seatbelt and Sora remembered to do her own.

"Haven't forgotten anything?" Donald asked as he pulled the gear stick back. "We're off then!"

Sora nearly yelped when she felt Chip and Dale on top of her head but she was too busy feeling squeamish as the sudden ascend upwards got to her. "Urgh…"

 _Air sick…I can't believe I'm feeling_ _ **air**_ _sick…_

"Sora, look outside." Goofy encouraged and Sora turned, mouth dropping open as she saw stars flying passed (actually, the gummi ship was flying passed the stars, not the other way around). The stars zoomed through the area in an array of colours, the distant shape of Traverse Town being left behind within a few moments.

"So where're we going first?" Sora asked, nearly kicking herself for not asking earlier.

 _Seems like I'm still forgetful, even now…_

"The coliseum." Donald said, sounding slightly put out. "As much as I hate to waste time, Leon's right when saying you need experience. Where better to train than in an arena full of opponents that won't kill you?"

Sora nodded, ignoring the last part while wondering if Riku might be there.

 _He was the best fighter on the island, after all…_

"And who knows? Maybe the king is there too! Ahuk!" Goofy smiled happily.

Sora nodded, yawning a bit even as she felt that familiar lull to go back to sleep.

 _Seems I'm still as lazy as back on the island…Let's just not get any weird dreams…this…time…?!_

"THE DREAM!" Sora shouted, nearly jumping out of her seat but only succeeding in hurting her chest as the seat belt kept her firmly in place.

"Damn it, kid!" Donald quacked. "I'm trying to drive here. Sit down and be quiet!"

"I'm. Not. A. Kid." Sora whispered furiously even as her eyes widened as she saw ships flying outside the window trying to attack the gummi vessel. "Who're they? Why're they attacking us?!"

"Gwarsh, they're heartless ships." Goofy explained, aiming a controller thing in the heartless ships' direction. "They're everywhere in space so we have ta concentrate!"

Sora distantly nodded, her mouth dropping open as the controller Goofy pointed towards the heartless caused the guns on the outside of the ship to start firing shots at the heartless ships.

"M-May I…?" Sora asked, excitement coursing through her bones at the prospect of _actually_ shooting down bad guys like a real life game.

"No!" Donald shouted, turning the ship and causing its occupants to suddenly lean to the left. "Now be quiet!"

Sora was about to argue but Chip whacked her on the head and Sora snapped her mouth shut, sighing.

 _Oh well…I've still got the journey to the next world and the next! I'll keep nagging until they'll have to give in!_

So Sora was forced to sit through the journey, half excited as she watched the stars and the occasional comet fly by (along with various heartless ships). Of course, watching the heartless ships sail passed only succeeded in making her pout.

Sora was _sure_ it would've been so much fun!

But she didn't waste all that time sitting there brooding.

Her thoughts were brought back to her mysterious dream, the thoughts she had kept on having prior to leaving Destiny Islands. Somehow, the dream was warning her about the danger and that she would go on a journey…That much was sure.

Sora bit her lip unsurely, somehow starting to feel guilty.

 _I…I could have warned Riku and Kairi! We…We would've still been together! But…_

Sora shook her head, biting her lip as she began telling herself it wasn't her fault.

 _I can't really blame myself… After all, I did just think it was a dream! And besides, both of them are smart enough to find out what's going on! I'm just gonna' have to surprise them when I finally find what world they're on!_

"Thank goodness." Jiminy Cricket smiled at Sora (to her confusion) so he elaborated. "We were losing fuel."

Sora blinked before her eyes widened and she looked out the window eagerly for any signs of the spaceship fuel fillers (like the boat-gas fillers back on Destiny Islands).

She was met with the same scenery as before-stars flying in and out of range, the occasional comet and colourful specks in the sky. Also there was a fleet of heartless chasing after them. But there was no sign of any gas station.

"Where'd you get the fuel…?" Sora asked and before Jiminy could answer (he seemed surprised), Donald answered.

"We already told you, remember?" Donald huffed. "This ship runs on _happy faces._ Smiling fuels the ship."

Sora blinked, waiting for the punch line and upon realizing they were serious, she sweat dropped.

"Um…What type of ship are we on?" Sora sweat dropped. "I thought you had to…you know, use gas to fuel the ship? Weren't you using…um…what did the teacher call it again…? A figure of speech…?"

"Maybe that's how its run on your island but the gummi ship is different for us." Jiminy said thoughtfully, staring at the fuel metre.

"Wait till Riku hears this!" Sora grinned, fist pumping the air. "I bet he won't even believe it! I wonder if he's visiting other worlds too…"

* * *

 **Me:** That's all for now! **Next chapter** in a **few hours!**

 **Riku:** Mearad does say thanks for all the reviews but she's not cool like I am... Or at least my mom says I'm cool. Kairi, why don't you like me?

 **Kairi:**... Hey, where'd Sora go?

 **Me:** Anybody know where _that_ came from?


	10. Olympus Coliseum Part 1

**Me:** I really loved writing this chapter!

 **Sora:** Questions and answer time!

 **Me:** I won't be adding any extra worlds in this story but I most likely will when I write Kingdom Hearts II. However, there **_are_** a few surprises that I will have in this story regarding characters who _**may or may not**_ have lost their worlds and make surprise appearances. If anybody has certain requests, just ask and I'll see what I can do.

* * *

Olympus Coliseum:

"We're here." Donald announced, stopping the ship and unbuckling his belt. "Remember, say nothing that we come off-world, got it?"

"Yep!" Sora grinned, placing her hands behind her head as she followed Donald and Goofy out the ship and passed through a huge light brown door (it looked like it reached the sky!).

Her mouth dropped open as she saw two huge statues in either side of another door further on. They seemed to be in some kind of rectangular clearing , with pillars on Sora's far left and far right. There seemed to be some kind of huge coliseum passed the doors north of Sora.

Sora's head was turning left and right at speeds so fast, she could hear the distinct whoosh as she turned her neck to get a good look at everything. Her excitement was also fuelled by the sun shining down brightly, giving Sora the sunlight she craved that Traverse Town didn't have.

It reminded her of home.

"What're those?" Sora asked, looking at the wall behind her to her left and seeing a blackboard with a whole bunch of names. "Olympus Coliseum Competitors?"

"Yep." Goofy smiled. "Garwsh, maybe we should try to get our names up there?"

"Hehe, that would be awesome!" Sora grinned back even as Donald had stars in his eyes as he eagerly rubbed his hands together.

"And we'd probably win a trophy or maybe even some money! Wak, wak, wak!" Donald laughed.

"Well, let's go!" Sora said eagerly, already running inside the next set of doors (all the while looking awestruck at the huge statues). "I'm going to get super strong and kick Riku's butt! I'll show him that I _can_ beat him!"

"Hey, wait for me!" Donald grinned as they all caught up to her and she shot them a smile.

"Garwsh, you and this Riku fellow sound close." Goofy smiled and Sora grinned (she had decided to wait for them at the doors-a case of nervousness washing over her).

"Yep! We're best friends!" Sora smiled as she opened the doors and walked in to reveal a smaller room with trophies behind a glass counter on either side of them and a huge block at the side looking much out of place but much too heavy to move. "Me, Riku and Kairi! Riku and I always compete and stuff and Kairi's the judge! Kairi's really smart too! But he's always nagging us to do our homework…"

"Hyuk!" Goofy laughed. "I think I'd like to meet your friends, Sora!"

Sora grinned back even as Donald rolled his eyes and shoved them forward. "That's great. Now let's _go_ and start your training, Sora!"

Sora shared a small grin with Goofy before going up to the…weird half-human, half goat man who had a tail (the goat half of his body was covered in red fur). He was looking down at a paper with his back to the three arrivals, too occupied with what was written down.

"Um…" Sora began but the man stopped her before she could actually continue, putting his hand up and pointing towards the huge block while still scanning the page in his hand.

"Perfect timing. Can you move that block out of the way?" he asked and Sora looked at Donald, who seemed equally as surprised.

"Err…I guess…" Sora muttered as Donald nodded to her silently while mouthing 'this must be part of your training'.

 _Does…Does he really expect me to move it! It must way tonnes! And who asks some random stranger to move tonnes of blocks?! Hmm…Other worlds are pretty weird…BUT! I will never give up on a challenge….Never…_

Frowning a bit, Sora gritted her teeth and started to push the block for the second time….

And again…

And again…

She felt her body moving downwards and grinned as she realised she had moved it…only to sweat drop as she realised the block hadn't even budged and she had just been losing her grip, pushing _herself_ away from the block instead.

Donald rolled his eyes and shooed her out of the way, ruffling his tail feathers before giving a huge run and slamming into the block to try and force it to move.

He only ended up with a flattened beak.

"Ow…" Donald winced, rubbing his beak as Sora turned to the weird half man (who was now on a stool checking out a sign on the wall).

 _Weird people or not, that block is too heavy!_

"It's way too heavy!" she said, a bit annoyed.

"What?!" the weird half man laughed (he was around half of Sora's height) as he turned around to reveal a red goatee on his chin. "Since when have you been such…a…Oh."

The man had originally been looking up, as if expecting somebody a lot taller than Sora. It was only then that Sora realised he _must've_ been expecting somebody else. Because nobody normal would've been able to move that huge block.

 _Whoops…Well, at least I know I'm just as good as the next competitor! But I wonder who would be able to move a super heavy block…?_

"Wrong guy." The half-size man (literally- he was so small!) said suddenly, a scowl coming onto his face as he put his hands on his hips. "What're you doing here, kid?"

"I'm NOT a kid!" Sora huffed, fed up with everyone assuming she was a kid just because she wasn't that tall (Riku and Kairi teased her enough about her height as it is!). "And anyway, you're the one who's smaller than _me_!"

"GAH!" Donald quickly launched at her, putting a hand to her mouth to shut her up. "Just ignore her! She has no manners!"

The half man scowled but accepted the apology, even as Donald continued to hang onto Sora and shut her mouth with his hands. Jumping off the stool, he started coming menacingly towards Sora (or as menacingly as he could being so small) and started speaking.

"This here's the world-famous Coliseum- _heroes only._ " He said, emphasis on the heroes only which made Sora scowl harder and it seemed, get Donald to loosen his hold on her.

 _He's probably angry too!_

By the look in Donald's eyes, he too knew he had been insulted in a way.

"I've got my hands full preparing for the games!" the half man said, a scowl on his face again (Riku said that if the wind changes and somebody looks like that, their faces would be stuck like that and Sora couldn't wait to see goat man's face stay like that). "So run along, _pip squeaks_."

This time it was Goofy who held back both Donald and Sora from launching themselves at the half man. Unable to attack the half man and show him just how much of a hero she was (she had saved lots of people from the heartless back in Traverse Town, not to mention that one time she saved a butterfly from one of the orphanage kids killing it), she settled for speaking instead.

Of course, at the moment she chose to speak that stupid short half man guy decided to cut her off at seeing her look, his scowl easing up a bit.

"Look, it's like this. Heroes from all over come here to fight ferocious monsters and win tournaments." he said and Sora felt both her eagerness and irritation at the man increase.

 _I can totally fight a bunch of ferocious monsters! It'll be easy!_

"You've got heroes standing right in front of you." Donald hisses, his eyes red with anger.

"Heroes?" half man asked with incredulously, his eyes flickering to Sora before bursting out laughing. "That little runt?! Ha haha! No way!"

This time it took the strength of both Donald and Goofy to keep her from launching herself at the guy who dared call her a runt.

 _I'm the second strongest on my island! How dare he call me weak!_

Testament to her strength, she had nearly succeeded in throwing both Donald and Goofy's grips off of her with just physical force. Of course, what fuelled her strength was the half man going to the pillar and laughing harder.

"If you can't even move this…" he laughed, pushing against the block with all his strength but not even causing it to move a bunch. "If you can't even…Hah…hah…You can't…ha….call yourself a hero…hah…."

Sora stopped struggling as she saw the half man was already starting to get tired. A smirk found its way onto her lips as she folded her arms and waited patiently for the half man to give up and admit the block was too heavy to push.

"Okay…" he huffed, getting up (he had a short break resting on the ground for a few seconds) and glaring at her (though it wasn't as heated as before). "So it takes more than brawn. Well, well, let's see what you can do!"

Sora grinned, smiling at both Donald and Goofy who smiled back.

"The name's Phil. When you're ready, come through here for some training." Phil said, taking his notepad and walking through the door to (most likely) the arena.

Sora lost her smile at hearing she had to _train_ to prove she was a hero. Couldn't Phil already _see_ she was one?!

"Grrrr…" Sora glared at the retreating form of Phil who still refused to even consider they were heroes.

"Come on!" Goofy smiled. "If it's training for heroes, it should be easy! After all, we _are_ heroes! Hyuk!"

"Hmm…" Sora shrugged (she wasn't built to hold a grudge and she could kind of get why he was grumpy-he _was_ preparing for the games and it seemed he was alone so he must've been tired). "Alright! We'll just prove we're heroes to him!"

What proceeded for the next few hours was a bunch of obstacle courses (breaking barrels, running laps, swimming (where did he get the pool anyway?), sprinting up hills with a huge rock tied to their backs…Laughing and cheering each other on as they raced each other to carry more or complete the training the quickest.

Anyhow, when they were finally done, Sora, Donald and Goofy dropped down to the ground in an exhausted heap in the middle of the arena, too tired to go back into the tournament room to rest.

"H-How…W-was…that?" Sora huffed out, face red from extortion.

"Not bad." Phil admitted, writing something on his clipboard. "You're better than I expected."

"Really?!" Sora shot up, excitement plastered on her face before she groaned at moving her overworked muscles too much. "Oww…Anyway, at least we're heading for the games, huh?!"

Donald and Goofy nodded, ear splitting smiles across their faces too.

 _Look out Riku! I am so going to be stronger for our next rematch!_

"Even though we're wasting time, training before and during the match is worth it!" Donald smiled but Sora sweat dropped.

 _I'm pretty sure you're just wanting to participate in the games to win, not to train…But then again….So do I!_

"Games? I'm afraid not." Phil scowled again. "You guys ain't heroes. If you want to compete, show me your entry ticket! Until then, master this spell to _start_ to be a real hero. Now just go home, kid!"

Sora's mouth dropped open as Phil dismissed them and luckily Donald and Goofy had quick thinking to grab her before she killed Phil.

 _He didn't warn us about needing a ticket! He led us up to believe if we trained, we could enter! AND then he calls me 'kid' again! GRRAAAAA! I'm going to show him what it means to be a true hero!_

"Come on Sora, let's just go." Donald huffed angrily, dragging the still angry teen outside as he put the thunder spell book in his bag.

"Stupid old goat-man!" Sora huffed, wincing as her she moved her muscles too much again. "So he trained us for nothing…?"

"Gee, well. Technically he said he wanted to see what we _could_ do." Goofy said lightly. "He never said we'd actually enter the tournament. Besides, we only came here to train so you could get used to fighting with your keyblade, Sora."

Sora sighed and looked at Donald who shared her disappointment. She was truthfully looking forward to entering the preliminaries because that meant she could train more and fight stronger people, as well as see how much she improved.

 _And it gives me a chance to brag to Riku and Kairi, and maybe even become strong enough to defeat Riku when we have our next rematch! Oh well, I'll just have to train with the heartless! There's plenty of them around in Traverse Town…But still…_

"Stupid Phil…" Sora muttered as they walked out into the coliseum square to head back to the gummi ship and go home (their training had went on for the whole day and they were pretty tired).

"Ah. Rather a stubborn old goat, wouldn't you say?"

The trio turned around to stare at the person who had spoken suddenly. He was a weird person with blue flames for hair, blue skin and a weird black robe. He smiled at them, revealing sharp and pointed teeth like a shark.

"Who are you?!" Donald squawked, eyes narrowed as he held his staff up at the person (who still seemed utterly relaxed).

"Whoa, hold on there. Wait, let me guess?" he chuckled, coming towards them. "You want to enter the games, right?"

Sora nodded, staring glumly back at the ground at being reminded she couldn't enter. Putting a hand on her shoulder, the guy waved his other hand near her face.

"Well, get a load of this." He said, just as an entry pass to the games appeared in his hands.

Impossible…

Yet…

It was right there…

In front of her face…

"A pass?" Sora gasped, feeling excitement as she looked at the guy in hope.

"It's all yours. Good luck kid." He said, much to Sora's slight dismay (she _wasn't_ a kid) but she let it pass because she was _entering the games_. "I'm rooting for you, little shorty."

"YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!" Sora laughed, fist pumping and joining hands with Donald and Goofy as they spun in a circle cheering (well, Donald and Sora were-Goofy seemed more inclined to just go with the flow).

 _We're so going to show Phil that we're awesome and true heroes!...And maybe I'll brag to Riku later…_

-With Phil-

"Where did you get that?" Phil asked, eyeing the pass as if it might be fake.

 _Hah! Bet you didn't think we could enter the games! This is what you get for thinking we couldn't enter! We'll prove to you that we can beat everyone!_

"Can we enter the games now?" Sora asked eagerly, bouncing from one foot to the other she was so excited, her short and spiky brown hair flopping around on her head.

He cast a suspicious glance at them before nodding. "…I guess so. We start with the preliminaries tomorrow. Come bright and early. Get enough rest-you'd done your training for today."

With that out of the way, Sora, Donald and Goofy made their way to the gummi ship to head back to Traverse Town to sleep for the night and get enough rest for tomorrow's preliminary tournament.

* * *

 **Me:** So Sora's not suspicious at all about some random stranger giving her a ticket, huh?

 **Sora:** S-shut up!

 **Me:** Find out what happens next time on Singdom Farts!

 **Kairi:**...That was the worst joke eve-

 **Me:**...Shut up Kairi.


	11. Olympus Coliseum Part 2

**Me:** Hello everyone! I'll be updating twice today (assuming you live in Australia). If not, I have no idea of the time difference wherever you are but I will update again in around four hours or so!

 **Sora:** Yay!

 **Me to Mana:** Mana, unfortunately I couldn't see your comment until this morning... Two days after I posted the chapter... I'm actually quite put out because that was a great idea...

 **Me to Team Wingless:** Thanks for the review! Usually I do tend to write more than needed. Still trying to figure out how to _not_ write too much...

 **Sora:** You know, the author notes in this story aren't as funny as in your other stories...

 **Me:** (T_T) Yuffie!

 **Yuffie: *** Yuffie appears and ties Sora up with a rope, effectively shutting her up* I'm on it!

 **Me:** I don't own Kingdom Hearts or any of its characters.

* * *

On the gummi ship…

"Can I?"

"No!"

"Please?"

"NO!"

"Come on! Just once!"

"Damn it Sora! I said NO!"

"Gawrsh, Donald. If you don't look where you're going, we're gonna-"

"GAHH!"

"Sora, just sit down and shut up!"

"Oh Chip! Stop hitting me! And why are you and Dale on my head again?!"

"If you stop misbehaving, we wouldn't hit you to remind you to behave! And your head is comfortable."

"If it's comfortable, then let me drive the ship!"

"That doesn't even make sense!"

"Yes, it does Donald! Come onnnnnnnnn! Pleasssssssssssse?"

Later at Traverse Town-

Sora was walking well ahead of Donald when they arrived back in Traverse Town, grinning sheepishly as she tried to ignore the burning glare Donald shot at her through the night lights of Traverse Town.

She had nearly caused them to crash into a stray meteor.

Twice.

And that wasn't counting the various heartless ships.

"Hey, it's Sora!" Yuffie ran up to them, holding some freshly bought sandwiches in her hand. "What're you guys-"

Donald and Goofy had caught up to them but before Yuffie could continue, a loud growl went through the area and Sora gasped, face completely horrified.

"Wah!" Donald jumped, looking around for any signs of the monster. "What was that noise?!"

Donald, Goofy and Yuffie got into a circle, looking around with narrowed eyes even as Sora shook her head.

"This is horrible…!" Sora said, looking wide eyed and horrified at them. "I…I haven't eaten!"

Insert massive sweat dropping.

"That…Was your stomach?" Yuffie smiled awkwardly.

And then Yuffie's stomach growled too.

Yuffie coughed a bit to hide her embarrassment even as Donald and Goofy's stomachs rumbled too.

"See, we're all hungry!" Sora nodded. "Let's go eat!"

After eating…

"So Phil was like 'we weren't allowed to enter the preliminaries', but then this cool guy gave us a pass and-" Sora stopped as Leon cut in.

"Somebody gave you a pass?" Leon asked, frowning. "Who was it?"

Yuffie had left a few minutes after they all ate the sandwiches (Yuffie had taken them to the shop where she bought hers and Goofy and Donald purchased some). She had to go on patrol and left them with a wave, a grin, and the bill for the extra sandwiches she had ordered (which left Donald in a bad mood).

They had then returned to the inn to rest for the night, the gummi ship obviously not being designed as a place for them to sleep. Of course, as soon as they entered the inn and saw Leon and Aerith, Sora burst into 'Sora speech' as she explained everything that happened, inwardly berating herself for forgetting to tell Yuffie, even as Donald and Goofy went to their rooms to change and go to bed.

Which was what led her to now.

Sora scratched the back of her head. "He never mentioned his name though he looked pretty creepy…But who cares? We're entering the games! I gotta' go tell Yuffie!"

Sora ran off (presumably to go find Yuffie and tell her the news), while Leon stared at the ground with a frown on his face.

"Leon?" Aerith came into the room, having heard the whole conversation. "What's wrong?"

"It seems weird…Why would somebody go out of their way to help a random kid enter the games…?" Leon muttered, narrowing his eyes. "Something doesn't seem right."

Aerith cast a worried look towards where Sora had run out of the room.

The next day…

"Wow, you're bright and early!" Phil nodded to them. "There isn't any crowds today because it is the preliminaries but if you win this, you can enter all the other competitions! Then the crowd will see your skills!"

Sora grinned, nodding to Donald and Goofy who grinned back.

"We're ready!" Sora smirked, as she summoned her keyblade. "We're going to win!"

-Same time at Traverse Town-

"So they left already?" Leon frowned, as a nagging feeling was telling him _something_ wasn't right.

"Yeah, but what's the big deal?" Yuffie asked, grinning. "It's just the preliminaries. It shouldn't be that hard."

"I dunno." Leon glared at the floor. "It's been bothering me. Why would some random person just give away an entry pass to Sora? It was like they wanted Sora specifically to enter the preliminaries."

"Alright then." Aerith smiled her it's-decided-so-you-can't-say-otherwise smile as she walked into the room with Cid behind her. "Let's go."

Yuffie jumped off the table she had been sitting on, grinning eagerly. "AWESOME! ...Go where?"

"We're gonna' check up on the kid." Cid said, his toothpick ever presence in his mouth.

-Back with Sora-

They were already in the 7th round, and Sora couldn't be happier. Sora grinned as she easily dodged the heartless coming at her. And then she decided to cast thunder- _or at least try to._

A puff of smoke came from her hand and the heartless paused in front of her, no doubt expecting something to happen.

Nothing happened.

"Hehe…" Sora scratched the back of her head nervously before yelping and ducking as the soldier heartless swung at her.

A quick slash of her keyblade and it was gone but her worries were not over because they still had one more heartless to face-a big, fat and round heartless that looked immensely like a ball.

 _If only I had a bat…_

The big heartless started charging towards her and, with a sudden flash of inspiration, positioned her keyblade like a bat and swung at it.

"WHA!" Sora gasped as she was knocked back a few meters from the force of the red bellied heartless ramming into her keyblade.

However, she managed to stay balanced and not fall, grinning as Goofy attacked the heartless that hadn't been so lucky in its balance and had fallen down.

"Winners: Sora, Donald and Goofy." Phil announced, shooting them a smile as he waved the white flag that meant the match was over (it didn't end until the opponents were unconscious, dead or gave up and Phil waved the flag).

Sora grinned as Donald and Goofy followed her off the platform to get some water.

"That was awesome!" Sora grinned, as they waited a few minutes later to be called back onto the arena to fight the next round. "I think we're passed the training stage now! And if we beat the tournament, we're going to go to another world, right?"

"Yep!" Goofy nodded. "So we can quickly find the King and your pals, Riku and Kairi!"

Sora nodded, summoning her keyblade. "Cause they're obviously not on this world! Riku would've definitely participated in the tournament and Kairi would've known we were participating and came to watch or at least wait outside so he could talk to us!"

"Enough talking!" Donald squawked. "We're up again!"

Sora had a sudden thought. "Hey Donald, why can't I cast thunder?"

Donald huffed. "You need to practice-but I doubt that would do any good. Some people just don't have the ability to cast spells-you are one of them!"

Sora sighed but before she could mope, Goofy reminded them of something crucial.

"Hurry, we're going back on! Come on fellas'!" Goofy shouted quickly as he stood near the arena entrance door.

Donald and Sora quickly ran to verse the next lot of heartless. She knew it was heartless because they seemed to like participating more than actual people (Sora hadn't even fought _one_ actual person yet).

Down to one match…

"Okay!" Sora couldn't help the glee on her face as Donald and Goofy wore matching expressions. "If we win this, we can enter all the tournaments and be recognised as true heroes!"

"But Sora" Goofy chuckled. "I thought you just wanted to test your strength?"

Sora blushed and scratched the back of her head sheepishly. "Well, I do. But when I find Riku and Kairi, I can't wait to tell them we're real heroes! Riku probably couldn't live it down! I'd be the one beating him!"

"Yeah! We'll be real heroes!" Donald grinned, and Phil called them out onto the ring.

Surprisingly, they weren't fighting heartless this time. It was a person this time.

 _He looks weird…_

He had spiky blond hair, spiker than Sora's, at least. Wearing a red cape over his blue pants and singlet, with a belt or rope looping around parts, he looked intimidating.

His icy blue eyes that seemed super black only unnerved Sora more.

But!

She wasn't one to judge by appearances and she stared curiously at him and the huge sword that was slung over his shoulder, wrapped in bandages.

"The Final Match: Cloud vs Sora, Donald and Goofy!" Phil shouted.

There was a few seconds where the competitors were meant to get ready, sizing each other up or formulation plans in their heads.

However, this wasn't openly said and you were meant to figure it out on your own that competitors were given this time as a time to strategise.

Unfortunately, a fourteen year old who was too curious for her own good used that valuable time to ask a question.

Donald and Goofy of course seemed just as interested in the Cloud guy when Sora asked the question.

"Why did you bandage your sword?" Sora asked innocently, tilting her head to the left as she pondered all the sword games she and Riku had played back on Destiny Islands-both in real life and on the gaming console.

She couldn't remember any games in which somebody bandaged their sword. So why did this guy?

Cloud's eyes flickered with something and Sora was able to distinguish it immediately, partly because his mouth lifted up into a small smile, partly because she'd seen it on Riku's and Kairi's face so many times when she'd said something funny.

"Begin!" Phil shouted before Cloud could answer (Sora wasn't even sure if he _would_ answer).

However, Sora didn't have time to contemplate the now forever-mystery of Cloud's bandaged sword. One moment Cloud was in front of her, the next Donald had already been kicked out the ring.

 _He's fast…!_

Still, Sora's eyes narrowed in concentration. She had not done all her training for noth-

Sora gasped as Goofy crashed into her thanks to a swing from Cloud's sword. Luckily, Goofy's shield had made sure nobody was cut up but Goofy's shield was broken, cut cleanly in two. Cloud had cut through it was if it was mince pie.

"Yikes!" Goofy gulped. "He's really strong!"

Sora quickly jumped in the air, swinging downwards and glaring at him.

 _I am not losing the chance to enter into the tournaments!_

Cloud quickly blocked Sora's attacks and even though Sora was putting as much pressure as she could into the attack, he easily sent her flying away.

"Oww…" Sora mumbled as Donald cheered them on from the sidelines (once out of the ring, he was disqualified and wouldn't win unless his team won).

' _Don't worry Donald! I'll definitely win for us and we can all enter the tournament!'_ Sora thought.

They continued to fight Cloud, but even Sora could tell it was a losing battle (not that she knew how-he had bandages around his weapon for goodness sake! How could his attacks hurt her and cut through Goofy's shield so easily if the sharp part of the blade was covered by cloth?!).

Sora's arms shook with exhaustion as Goofy collapsed outside the ring, having been thrown out by a kick from cloud (at least he hadn't used his sword-Goofy would've been chopped in half no doubt!). Cloud showed no reaction whatsoever as he turned to her, seemingly completely immersed in the fight and Sora narrowed her eyes.

 _I've got to win! I want to be a hero!_

Charging at him once more, she barely dodged his sword and tried to deliver an uppercut but he moved faster than she could see and she was kicked back near the edge of the ring (though luckily she managed to stay inside it). She started to get up, trying to find the strength to stand but only managing to flop onto her back and stare at the sky.

Cloud came towards her, sword raised with his expression still blank.

 _Grr….I guess I've lost…I can't get up…_

Cloud put the sword near her throat, face still blank and both he and Sora waited for something. Sora, of course, was waiting for Phil to call the match. Cloud? Well, she had no idea what he was waiting for but she believed he was waiting for Phil too.

Though he seemed to be frowning. "Just a kid…Why would he want me to kill you? What the hell's he up to?"

Wait.

Sora's eyes widened and she felt panic course through her.

Cloud was trying to kill her?!

Suddenly, Sora realised how _very_ real this situation had become.

She wasn't playing games at home with Riku and Kairi anymore.

She wasn't playing games on her gaming console where losing just meant you could try again.

This was real life.

Sora struggled to get up and surprisingly, Cloud moved his sword away from her, face expertly blank once more.

So…He wasn't trying to kill her…?

Cloud lowered his weapon but before Sora could feel relief, a huge black paw suddenly slammed into Cloud, knocking him unconscious as Sora scrambled to find her strength to move away.

 _WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!_

Sora felt terror well in her as she looked at the gigantic three headed dog that growled threateningly at her. It was humongous, all black and razor sharp teeth dripping with saliva.

It looked like it was something from her younger childhood nightmares.

It was even bigger than that huge heartless she had to fight on her island.

Sora felt frozen to the spot, fear preventing her from moving as she stared into the angry eyes of one of the heads which were lunging towards her.

But then somebody was in front of her, using pure physical strength to keep the head that had lunged at Sora from snapping her up. He had an orange cape on, orange hair and lots of muscles-however weird they looked, it was his muscles that was saving Sora so she wouldn't complain.

"HERC!" Phil shouted distantly from somewhere behind Sora and Sora was surprised to find out how tired she was as she took a nervous step back while this 'Herc' guy wrestled with the dog head and tried to prevent it from coming closer.

"Get them out of here!" Herc shouted and Phil was suddenly near Sora, dragging her with Donald and Goofy who were already running back inside to the Tournament resting room to safety.

Sora's heart was beating erratically as she tried to stop panicking. She sat on the ground, trying to convince herself everything was okay. They were safe now, inside the building and away from the huge dog. She hadn't been eaten. She hadn't died.

"That was Cerberus, the guardian of the underworld. Hercules should be able to handle him." Phil said, but he looked worried.

 _Well, Phil says this Herc guy-wait, Phil called him Hercules…Well, he can handle Cerberus…There's no reason for me to interfere…_

"But then again, maybe not…" Phil sighed, eyebrows creased in worry. "This doesn't look good."

Sora frowned before she clenched her fists and got up.

She may have been scared at first but…(well, admittedly, she was still scared but…)

She couldn't let Hercules die! Or Cloud! He _did_ spare her life!

And when did she let fear stop her before?! She had been prepared to travel on the raft, despite fearing there might not be a world or the other worlds might be scary! She had, when she was younger, climbed the huge trees even though she was scared to show she could do it. And hadn't she fought that huge heartless on her island AND that armoured boss heartless in Traverse Town only a few days ago?!

She may be scared but if she wanted to help Hercules, she had to have courage.

And that was something she had plenty of.

Grabbing an ether from her bag, she smiled when she regained her energy just like the first time when the moogle gave her one back in Traverse Town.

She should use them all the time.

"Kid, you ain't going in their alone, are you?!" Phil's mouth dropped open and Sora paused by the arena entrance, turning to Phil with as confident a face she could muster.

"I am! I'm going to go save Hercules!" Sora shouted, summoning her keyblade to her hand which brought her some comfort as she turned and ran into the arena.

And she wasn't completely defenseless. She _had_ trained all her life with her toy sword and the keyblade was almost the same with only heavier weight and shape.

She could do this.

She _would_.

* * *

 **Me:** And that's that! Updating in four or so hours!

 **Sora:** How am I meant to fight a three headed dog anyway?!

 **Me:** Anyone care to guess?


	12. Dogs Can Spit Fire?

**Me:** Second chapter in a day! Yay!

* * *

The first thing she saw in the coliseum was Hercules and an unconscious Cloud over his shoulder. The next thing she saw or rather finally noticed was that Cerberus had them cornered and Herc seemed desperate as he tried to stop the beast from lunging at him.

"HEY! You stupid mutt!" Sora shouted without thinking and the three heads suddenly swerved to her, giving Hercules the time he needed to escape away from the dog and towards safety.

Swallowing, she gripped her keyblade in a vice-like hold.

"Don't worry Sora! We'll help!" Donald said as he and Goofy stopped right next to Sora, their staff and a bin lid as a makeshift weapon(Goofy's shield had been cut up by Cloud's sword) at the ready.

Sora nodded, feeling more confident with her new friends beside her. "Let's go!"

Sora quickly ran out of the way as the dog lunged at them, and the ground shook with the force of Cerberus smashing into the ground. She stumbled, but managed to stay upright.

"Guys, distract the heads!" Sora shouted, getting a confirmation from Donald and Goofy.

She quickly ran to the back of Cerberus where one of its legs were.

 _If you can't move, you'll be easier to take down!_

Slashing as hard as she could, Sora thought with grim satisfaction she had achieved her goal when Cerberus howled in pain. It stumbled a bit, before turning to growl at her, eyes filled with rage.

"Damn…" Sora mumbled, just as the dog shot a huge fireball out of its mouth, and Sora's eyes widened comically.

 _It's a dog! How the heck can it spit fireballs?_

Sora gasped as she was thrown sideways because of a fireball crashing near her. The intense heat was enough to let her know she _did not_ want to be hit by them. Getting back up, Sora made a split decision to attack its eyes, her stomach sinking when she saw Donald and Goofy on the ground, unconscious.

 _I'm on my own…!_

Cerberus roared again, and suddenly orbs of darkness appeared beneath Sora's feet. She didn't have time to react and suddenly she was in a world of pain, collapsed on the ground. The spell that Cerberus used sent white, hot pinpricks of pain through her body and she felt like she was about to faint.

"Damn it!" Sora cursed as she tried getting up, glaring daggers at the dog. "You stupid mutt!"

Cerberus lunged at her, going in for the kill. But Sora jumped up, ignoring her protesting limbs. Cerberus's middle head crashed into the ground where she had been, and Sora grinned.

"Eat this!" Sora yelled, as she threw her keyblade right into his eye.

The reaction was immediate. Cerberus howled, staggering backwards and crashing into the coliseum walls. The stands where people were meant to sit were crumbling beneath the monster dog's weight.

 _It's a good thing no crowds come for the preliminaries…_

Sora stood, keyblade held up as she panted for breath, watching Cerberus with narrowed eyes, tense and waiting for it to get back up.

Cerberus didn't.

Sora gradually caught her breath and still, Cerberus did not wake. With a quick sigh of relief, Sora's keyblade vanished and she stumbled a bit before noticing blood was falling down her face and onto the ground.

"Heh…When did I get hit…?" Sora mumbled as she wiped at the blood with the back of her sleeve, wincing when her hand brushed over the wound on her head. But she couldn't really bring herself to care as she once more, incredulously so, looked at the fallen Cerberus who was _still lying there_.

She had just done something amazing.

She had taken down a huge monster.

Even bigger than the one of her island and in Traverse Town.

She didn't even care that she was injured.

She knew what defeating Cerberus meant.

 _Phil is definitely going to admit I'm a hero for this! And imagine what Riku would say to what I just did! Maybe he and I can become world monster defeaters! And Kairi can fight as well…Though I bet he'll try and find something else to do…I wonder what they're doing now?_

She waited a few minutes, lost in thought as she sat on the ground by Donald and Goofy's unconscious forms, waiting for them to wake up. Her head was still stinging badly and she had a cut on her arm and but luckily her clothes weren't ripped (she loved her jacket and her shorts, not to mention how comfortable her loose t-shirt was).

She would've used a potion but they'd used all of them up during the tournament and Donald was the only one who knew how to cast cure (and the way she was with casting thunder and Donald's warning she was just not suited to casting magic, she didn't want to try casting cure encase she did something wrong).

It was only as Goofy started to stir that she realized Hercules and Phil were coming back out into the arena, no doubt the lack of roars or fighting making them wonder what had happened.

"Hey, do you have any potions? Sora mumbled and Phil nodded.

Hercules helped a dazed Goofy up and picked up a still unconscious Donald.

"What's wrong with him?" Sora asked, wondering why Donald was still asleep.

"He used too much magic." Hercules frowned as he stared intently at the duck in his arms. "Or at least, that's what I think."

"Right." Phil clapped his hands as Goofy blinked slowly, still in a daze. "Let's all get back to the rest room and get you some potions."

Sora nodded after Phil helped bandage her head to prevent the wound from bleeding more.

She had a bit of a headache but it was nothing she couldn't handle.

"Are you okay, Goofy?" Sora asked as they made their way back to the building. "And I think you're going to have to buy a new shield, Goofy…"

"Gawrsh, you're right! But that was some battle." Goofy frowned before smiling at something. "Sora, you defeated Cerberus all on your own! Though I'm a bit worried about Donald…"

"You three did pretty well out there." Herc smiled slightly as they entered the building and got some seats out to sit on. "Sorry about arriving late, Phil."

Phil was rummaging around in a drawer and came back out, arm full of green bottle-potions. He waved a hand in acceptance of Hercules's apology.

"So Hercules, who exactly are you?" Sora asked as Goofy drank a potion and smashed one in his hand so it fell over Donald (consuming healed more wounds than applying one on the body).

Unfortunately, as Donald was asleep, they couldn't give him a potion to consume so Goofy has no choice by to crush the potion. Sora accepted the potion from Phil with a smile, drinking it quickly and sighing as her headache went away to only a dull throb.

"Make sure you take it easy for a day or two." Phil warned. "Those potions may heal the wound but if you don't give yourself time to recover, you'll only succeed in reopening the wound."

Sora nodded but as she went to drink an ether, Phil stopped her again.

"Only take ethers if you're in the middle of a battle and can't afford to be tired." Phil explained. "They'll give you energy but it just means when you finally rest, you'll crash that much quicker and it isn't that good for your body if you do it often. So try and only use them if you need them."

"Oh…" Sora nodded, pocketing the ether and watching Goofy lightly slap Donald on the cheek to try and wake him up. And then she remembered Hercules still hadn't answered. "So…Who are you?"

"I am a hero." Hercules smiled at Sora's flabbergasted look. "Before you ask how to be a hero-it is something you must find out for yourself. You can't ask anybody for the answers."

Sora pouted but nodded.

Phil cleared his throat suddenly, getting out a parchment. "You'll have to tell him (he indicated to Donald) what I say….Okay, so… I do dub thee three junior heroes and full rights and privileges to participate in the games…"

It took a while to sink in.

First the shock.

Then the elation.

Then the digestion of what was actually said. Then…

 _Junior heroes?!_

"You guys still don't understand what it takes to be true heroes!" Phil said quickly to Sora at seeing her glare. "Besides, you're lucky you're entering kid! You're a girl, you know!"

"Gawrsh, at least we can enter the games!" Goofy smiled, trying to placate Sora as her fury only intensified. "And besides, that means we just have ta' prove we're heroes!"

 _I guess so…But still…I DID just fight a three headed dog…Oh well… At least I'm entering the games! I can fight tough opponents and get stronger!_

"Alrighty then!" Sora smiled, excitement making her summon her keyblade to her hand as she thought of all the battles she'd be having and winning. "I'll start by proving myself in the games!"

"There ain't gonna' be any games for a while though." Phil said. "We have to fix up the damages Cerberus caused."

"But what was with all the heartless entering the games?" Goofy asked and Sora nodded.

 _That_ was a very good question.

Phil frowned, not knowing how to reply before Hercules finally talked.

"I'm pretty sure the tickets have been duplicated." Hercules said. "But whoever it is, they're in league with the heartless. Make sure you stay alert."

Donald nodded. "We'll stay alert for the upcoming games. Something tells me these heartless are not good for the games."

Sora nodded before remembering Cloud. "Hercules, where'd Cloud go?"

"Ah, he walked out the building without a word after waking up." Hercules explained and Sora nodded, jumping up.

"Hey Goofy?" Sora asked, turning to Goofy (and the still unconscious Donald). "I'll be back. Just give me a moment."

She ignored Phil telling her to sit and rest or she could reopen her wounds, instead wanting to speak to Cloud before he left. Walking outside, she saw him sitting on the steps near the gate leading out the coliseum. She had some questions.

"Are you okay?" Sora asked hesitantly, and his piercing blue eyes looked into her own.

 _That wasn't actually what I wanted to ask but he looks upset or at least moody…._

"Yeah…" he mumbled, and Sora frowned as blood starting trickling down her face again.

 _Looks like the potion didn't work properly…Or I reopened the wound like Phil warned would happen…Whoops…_

"Here." Cloud said, holding a potion.

"O-Oh, thanks!" Sora smiled up at him, drinking the potion and grimacing at the disgusting taste.

 _I'll never get used to it…_

"Say, do you know why Cerberus attacked?" Sora asked one of the questions she had wanted to know the answer to.

Cloud sighed. "The lord of the underworld, Hades, set you up. The one who gave you the entry ticket to enter the games."

"Oh…" Sora frowned.

She'd been tricked.

 _But why does he want to kill me?_

"I was working with him but I didn't know he'd send the dog in." Cloud frowned, sitting back down on the steps.

"Why'd you go along with him anyway?" Sora asked, sitting down beside him.

"I'm looking for someone. Hades promised to help." Cloud closed his eyes. "I tried to exploit the power of darkness but it backfired. I fell into darkness and couldn't find the light."

Sora peered worriedly at him. "Don't worry, you'll find it!"

Cloud stared at her, a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips.

Sora seemed to think he was trying not to laugh. "I'm serious! You _will_ find your light! ...I'm searching too."

 _My friends are my light…I just know that they are still safe. I can feel it in my heart._

"For your light?" Cloud asked, getting up . "Don't lose sight of it."

Just as he turned to go, Yuffie suddenly bolted through the gates and jumped on his back.

"Hey Cloudy! We've been looking for you EVERYWHERE! Oh, and hey Sora! What's uuu-HUH? What happened you your face?!" Yuffie gasped (still hanging off Cloud who seemed irritated at her swinging on him).

"Um, things happened…?" Sora said awkwardly (where was Sora even meant to start explaining…?)

 _Wait. How do Yuffie and Cloud know each other anyway?_

"Yuffie, get off of him." Leon sighed, walking through the gates followed by Cid and Aerith.

"What are you all doing here?" Sora asked as Aerith came up to her to check her head wound.

"What happened to your head?" Aerith frowned, looking for a potion from her pocket.

Sora grinned at Aerith. "It's okay. I drank a potion. It should be healing…Weill, so long as I don't reopen the wound again..."

"What happened?" Leon asked, a frown ever present on his face.

"It was a set up." Cloud said quietly, turning around and trying to leave out the gate.

"And where do you think YOU'RE going?" Yuffie asked, jumping back on Cloud's back. "We've been looking for you for ages! You're coming home!"

"Home?" Sora asked, looking away from Aerith who was now inspecting her for any other wounds. "Cloud lives with you guys?"

"That he did." Cid said, huffing. "Until he went and disappeared on us."

 _That must've been when he went to find that person…_

"Is the guy who set the ambush caught?" Leon asked Cloud, and Cloud shook his head.

"No. But he won't be coming back for a while." Cloud said but he was forced to say no more as Yuffie started dragging him out the gate.

"Hey fellas!" Goofy shouted, running up to them with Donald (now awake) in tow. "Fancy seeing you here! Are you guys heading on home?"

Leon sighed before nodding.

"Are you okay, Donald?" Sora asked and Donald nodded, wincing a bit as he moved. "Just a bit tired."

"We can get Leon or Cid to fly your ship if you're tired." Aerith suggested kindly. "It's about an hour back to Traverse Town after all…"

Donald looked immensely grateful and so Sora kept her mouth shut about asking to drive, worried about Donald who seemed about ready to fall asleep standing.

In the end, it was decided that Leon would be driving the gummi ship back to Traverse Town because, as Cid put it "I ain't letting anyone drive my ship and crash it-good driver or not!"

And so, Donald and Goofy went in the gummi ship with Leon (it was still a three man ship so Sora couldn't go with them) while Sora went in Cid's spaceship with Yuffie, Aerith, Cloud and Cid himself.

Cid's ship was big, with around 10 seats for passengers to sit down on while one chair sat where the controls of the ship were (where Cid was going to be sitting). The ship was dark, the seats a soft black and there was only one window in the passenger area ("This ain't a tourist spaceship!").

It was only as they were leaving that they could really see the destruction of the coliseum.

"It must have been some battle…" Aerith mumbled from her seat near the only window. "What did you fight?"

"This huge three headed dog!" Sora grinned she started describing the battle. "It was seriously huge! And the teeth…Man, I'm glad I wasn't bitten…"

At Traverse Town…

Donald seemed to have slept on the trip back to Traverse Town and seemed to be much more energetic.

Leon?

Not so much.

"it…runs on happy faces…?" Leon mumbled, looking much like he had a very bad headache and wanted to sleep.

"What's Squall talking about?" Yuffie asked and Sora grinned, realising what must've happened.

"The gummi ship is special." Sora explained as they entered the inn. "To fuel the ship, people need to be happy and smiling."

"Hyuk!" Goofy laughed. "We almost ran out of fuel because Leon didn't smile at all!"

"That's no laughing matter!" Donald sighed. "I can't believe I slept through that…"

"Well, you did overwork yourself…" Sora said, yawning a bit. "But…I'm pretty tired too…"

"Well, at least we can enter the tournaments now!" Donald smirked, proud.

"Yeah!" Sora smiled. "We're going to be recognised as true heroes!"

"But remember, the coliseum has to be repaired first!" Goofy chuckled.

The trio walked behind Aerith and Yuffie while a muttering Leon and a silent Cloud trailed behind them to the rooms.

* * *

 **Me:** So Sora starts to see not everything is all sunshine and daisies! And also Cloud has joined Leon's gang!

 **Leon:**...How the hell can a ship run on people's smiles...? I still don't understand...


	13. Fighting is Different Now

**Me:** Okay! This is another friendship/Bond chapter! Wonderland comes next chapter!

* * *

Sora woke up both stiff and sore the next morning.

Her head throbbed with a dull pain but she ignored that, turning to see if Donald and Goofy were awake. The dark blue walls kept her headache to a minimum (she was sure sleeping in Aerith's yellow room would only make her headache worse-too much yellow).

Donald and Goofy were still asleep and Sora hesitated at waking them up, despite that being her first thoughts.

There were no clocks in their room so she wasn't sure how long they had been sleeping for. The fact that she still felt tired probably meant she hadn't slept for that long.

But still…She wanted to find Riku and Kairi already…It was getting kind of lonely without them around. It almost made her wish she'd still been at school because no matter where she tried to hide, Kairi always managed to find her when she didn't complete her homework. She wished Kairi had the same knack for finding her in other worlds like he did for finding her when she forgot to do her homework.

Yawning a bit, Sora, still in the clothes Aerith had gotten her, headed out the bedroom door quietly and towards the kitchen that Leon had rented for them. Aerith had gotten Sora some sleepwear seeing as Sora was caught unprepared because her island was destroyed and she had essentially nothing except the clothes on her back and her crown necklace around her neck.

Opening the door to the kitchen, Sora blinked slowly as she saw Cloud standing against the wall.

 _I forgot he came back with us…_

Cloud looked up as Sora entered but didn't say anything, making Sora extremely uncomfortable.

"Hehe…Hello…." Sora mumbled, scratching the back of her head nervously. "What time is it?"

For a second, Sora thought he wouldn't answer but he blinked and spoke. "…5:20am."

"Whoa, that's early…Too early to wake up Donald and Goofy…" Sora mumbled. "Hmm…Maybe I should go explore…?

 _I haven't really seen all of Traverse Town, after all! Might as well, while I can, explore as much of the new worlds as possible!_

So, humming, Sora headed for the door only to stop as Cloud spoke.

"You said you wanted to know why my sword had bandages on it?" he said quietly and tonelessly, almost as if he didn't care whether she did answer or not. "It's to keep it from getting damaged by the elements."

"Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh" Sora nodded, finally understanding as she came back into the room. "Kind of like, because it's too big, you can't get a sword belt to put it in, right?"

Cloud nodded, going silent again as he stared at the wall and seeing an opportunity, Sora barreled on with some questions she hadn't asked Cloud yesterday as they were going back to Traverse Town.

"So, how did you move so quickly?!" Sora asked excitedly, her eyes shining with curiosity as she waited for the secret that would probably help her defeat Riku.

Cloud snorted quietly, turning his bright blue eyes on her. "Training. Experience. Time."

Sora deflated a little, looking at the ground.

She'd already done training, yet Cloud beat her. She didn't have much experience and not much time neither, as no doubt she would soon find Kairi and Riku and have another rematch.

One that she'd lose if she didn't get better.

"Any other tips?" Sora asked, trying not to look too hopeful as Cloud assessed her.

"Try rolling out of the way of attacks."

Both of them looked up as Leon entered the room, sweating a little (he was probably training-at least Yuffie says he always trains).

"Rolling out of the way…?" Sora asked, sweat dropping. "But aren't I meant to be fighting, not running?"

"Sometimes, to defeat an enemy, you have to be quicker and smarter." Leon said, putting the towel over his neck and sitting in one of the chairs.

Sora nodded, listening attentively as she too grabbed a chair and sat down at the table.

"Did you ever use swords on your world?" Leon asked and Sora nodded.

"Yep!" Sora grinned. "On the play island! Me n' Riku used to have a sword battle all the time-though we were only allowed wooden swords…"

"You've been facing people your own age, with similar fighting styles and familiar attacks." Leon stated. "In a real battle, especially with the heartless, don't always charge into a battle. If dodging will be better, dodge. If fleeing would be better, flee."

Sora nodded, though a frown came to her face as she thought of the last part Leon said.

 _If feeling would be better, flee…_

"Thanks for the help!" Sora beamed anyway as she ran to the door. "I'm gonna' go explore the world! I'll listen to what you said! Oh, except for fleeing if people are in danger!"

Leon stared at her while Cloud just continued to lean on the wall, not looking but listening.

Sora elaborated. "If people are in danger, I won't ever flee! I'll fight no matter what!"

 _Just like with Hercules and Cloud!_

It seemed Cloud had made the connection too for he smiled for a second before leaving the kitchen and going into the hallway.

And then Sora went out the opposite door that lead to the Second District, smiling all the way as she began to walk through Traverse Town, finally allowing herself to get a good and calm look at the first new world she had arrived on.

Later that morning…

By around 8am (though Sora couldn't tell because the sky was still dark-she had to ask a lady walking by), Sora headed back to the inn. During her morning exploration, she had walked into a shop called the 'Gizmo Shop' and gotten a good deal of knowledge on how machines worked. She couldn't wait to tell Riku that either. She hadn't even been acknowledged as an adult on Destiny Islands and chosen a career. Yet she'd already seen part of what one job was like.

 _I guess other worlds are different in their career knowledge…_

After that, she had tried climbing up a wonky ladder but this proved to be a stupid idea, as one of the bars broke and she fell painfully to the ground. Luckily, she'd spun around and eased her fall by placing her hands out but she'd still crashed her knee into the ground as she fell into a crouching position.

Then, limping slightly, she headed towards Cid's shop, only to trip over a treasure chest that had been left in the corner of the Second District. Putting it in her bag, chest and all, Sora hummed as she went into Cid's shop and asked him for a potion for her knee.

Of course, she had to go collect some coffee from a store nearby before he'd _just give_ her a potion ("It ain't free so work for it!).

And then, satisfied with her accomplishment, she went back to the inn after asking a lady for the time.

Donald and Goofy were bound to be awake by now.

And she could finally go to the next world to find Riku and Kairi.

Of course, at that moment, a group of 8 soldier heartless decided to meet n' greet her.

So she introduced them face-first into her keyblade.

Defeating them quickly, she made her way back to the inn with only one more case of heartless problems.

"Sora!"

Turning around as Sora just walked through the second district doors, Yuffie ran up to her, grinning all the way.

"Hey, you heading back?" Yuffie smiled and Sora nodded, stumbling as Yuffie hit her on the back with a laugh. "Great! I'll race you!"

 _ **I'll race you.**_

Sora felt a brief flash of wistfulness as she remembered how many times Kairi said that to her and Riku. But then Sora sprung into action.

 _This is still a race…and I plan to win it!_

Darting around the corner, she quickly slammed open the inn doors, heading for the kitchen area were no doubt Donald and Goofy were (it had become some sort of unspoken meeting place).

Yuffie and Sora were neck to neck and as Sora's hand lunged for the doorknob, Sora was caught off guard as the door opened inwardly.

"WHAAAA!" Sora yelled as she flew through the open door- _right into Leon_. "Leon, watch out-"

She slammed into him and he seemed to stumble but his hands caught her and stopped her from falling to the ground. Sora groaned as she gingerly rubbed her nose where it had impacted on Leon. Then she looked up.

Leon stared sternly down at her, and Sora chuckled awkwardly.

"Hehe…whoops?" Sora mumbled, turning a bright red from embarrassment as Yuffie started chortling behind her, picking up Sora's bag that had fallen in the process.

Quickly standing up properly, Sora coughed and took a step backwards. "Sorry…"

Leon ran a hand through his hair and then sighed. "Don't worry about it."

Donald and Goofy were nowhere to be seen, Aerith was smiling at Sora as she sat on one of the chairs at the table, Cloud was also nowhere to be seen and Cid was obviously still working. Still, Sora counted herself lucky only Yuffie and Aerith saw her clumsiness.

"Hey, what's this?" Yuffie asked, pulling out the treasure chest Sora had collected earlier. "Have you opened it with your keyblade yet?"

Sora blinked. "What do you mean?"

Yuffie grinned. "Supposedly the keyblade can open any locked thing-such as a treasure chest."

Sora summoned her keyblade and pointed it at the treasure chest, mouth dropping open as the treasure chest unlocked. Inside was something called an elixir-Leon said it was rare, a special type of potion, so Sora put it carefully in her bag.

"Anyway…" Sora coughed as she finally remembered _why_ she had come barging in. "Did Donald and Goofy find a new world?"

 _Seriously, how do I always forget things so easily?_

"Yes." Aerith smiled. "Cid took a look at the gummi ship half an hour ago. He's found that on your map, instead of only having three worlds-Goody and Donald's home world, Traverse Town and the Olympus Coliseum, there are four."

"Four?" Sora asked as she sat down and grabbed some food (an orange and an apple). "So…There's a world on the map that we haven't been to…In other words, it shouldn't be there?"

"Yes, that's right." Aerith smiled. "We think that's where the king wanted Donald and Goofy to go, as the King was the one who put Traverse Town on the gummi ship coordination system. He may even be waiting on that world for the three of you to arrive."

"So who put on the Olympus Coliseum coordinates?" Sora asked and Leon sighed.

"Think." Leon frowned. "If you needed to train and Yuffie and I are fighters, what does that mean?"

Sora frowned, hating having to do a problem solving activity (it reminded her of maths-at least she didn't have any homework!). "Well…I guess…If you guys are fighters…You'd…participate in tournaments! You know where the coliseum is and added it to the gummi ship's coordinate system!"

"Aye, you are smart, kid." Cid huffed (Sora wasn't sure if he was being sarcastic), walking into the room with Donald and Goofy behind him, both smiling brightly.

"Sora!" Goofy smiled. "Are ya' ready to go?"

"Yep!" Sora nodded before turning to Leon. "Say…Where'd you get your scar from?"

"Honestly Sora!" Donald quacked. "Now's not the time! And do you have any tact?! Do you just go around asking people about anything?!"

Donald was obviously waiting for Sora to answer 'no' but Donald paused as Sora stared at him.

"…You don't?" Sora asked and Donald sweat dropped.

"No! So stop doing that!" Donald shouted, walking on ahead and Sora grinned sheepishly back at Leon, who only sighed at her.

"Don't worry about it." Leon said and Sora nodded, running after Donald and Goofy towards the gummi ship.

Sora smiled as she caught up to them, wondering what type of world she'd be going to this time. This would be the fourth world she'd ever visited!

They made their way to the gummi ship and as Sora sat in her seat, she looked at the coordinate map of all the worlds the gummi ship had travelled to-three in total (that weird castle-like one must've been Donald and Goofy's world) with one world a bland grey and shaded.

That must be the world they were going to visit next.

"Sora, are you listening to me?" Donald glared (he had been explaining about the non-interference thing again).

 _Riku and Kairi are going to love this ship…Maybe I should buy my own gummi ship when I find them? But then again, I'll probably need a job to buy a gummi ship…_

"Ah Phooey!" Donald mumbled as Sora kept staying in dreamland. "Goofy, let's start the ship!"

It was around twenty minutes into the journey that Sora finally noticed some of the heartless ships were almost inches away from the gummi ship. Peering out the window worriedly, she decided to voice her thoughts as Goofy continued shooting at the heartless in front of the ship while Donald drove it.

"Hey Donald, the heartless ships are getting clos-WAAA!" Sora was cut off as the gummi ship started shaking.

It was as if something huge just blasted into them.

"Goofy, activate the shield!" Donald shouted, just as he turned the wheel of the gummi ship and they started spinning.

"Gawrsh! I'm on it!" Goofy nodded, pressing a few buttons.

Suddenly, the gummi ship gave a tremendous groan and Sora gulped, wondering if it would break.

"GAHH!" Chip shouted as he ran through the door to the pitcock. "We've been hit and infiltrated!"

"Heartless!" Dale ran in too but before he could close the door, Sora had already unbuckled her seat and was running towards the pitcock, keyblade in hand.

"SORA, DON'T YOU DESTROY ANYTHING BUT THE HEARTLESS, OKAY?!" Chip's warning rang clear in Sora's head as she saw the thunder casting flying bell-like heartless zooming through the air-they were the ones who had got her once before (being electrocuted _was_ painful enough to remember).

There was also a few soldier heartless and some of the normal bug-like heartless.

Nothing she couldn't handle…if she was careful.

She swerved through them, attacking them head on before wincing as one of the soldier heartless slammed into her. Then suddenly, they had her surrounded in a circle-not even behind her was safe because the thunder-casting heartless were zooming around.

 _And if I attack them, I'm bound to hit some of the machinery of the gummi ship…That could be disastrous…Not to mention Chip would kill me…_

" _ **Try rolling out of the way of attacks."**_

Sweat trickled down Sora's face as the heartless moved closer to her and she pestered her brain to come up with anything, anything at all.

If she rolled out of the attacks coming towards her, the heartless' attacks would hit the machinery anyway. But if she attacked them, the thunder-casting heartless would get her instead. And her bag was back in the other room, where she had forgotten it from beside her seat in her haste to stop the heartless.

" _ **Sometimes, to defeat an enemy, you have to be quicker and smarter." Leon told her.**_

And then Sora's eyes widened as a plan finally came to her.

Just as the soldier heartless and the normal heartless were about to swarm her, she dodge rolled-

 _Right into them._

Falling on top of the heartless wasn't a part of her plan but before she could stop and think, she was off the heartless and rolling away just as thunder bolts struck down where the heartless were. In a flash, they disappeared and Sora was grinning from ear to ear as she turned to the thunder-casting heartless who had accidentally destroyed its own comrades.

There was a loud crackling sound as the gummi shield flared to life. Narrowing her eyes, Sora slashed at the heartless zooming around in the air and sending it spinning down to the ground.

Of course, while she had shown such promising strategic skills before, she completely ruined it when she forgot to plan this time and the heartless crashed into one of the gummi ship pipes.

 _Oh no…that's bound to have done some damage to the ship…_

A red light blared along with a loud alarm, confirming Sora's suspicions.

But all Sora could hear as she defeated the heartless and stood alone in the pitcock was one voice.

"SORAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Chip screeched.

Sora began praying for her life.

Half an hour later…

"I can't believe you!" Chip screeched out. "One order! That's all I asked!"

"I'm really sorry…" Sora whispered, looking down guiltily. "I can help repair it if you like?"

Chip, who had still been glaring, sighed and shook his head, losing his glare at Sora. "Don't worry about it. I'm being unfair. You did save us and take care of the heartless."

Sora returned Chip's smile before the small animal turned his head and scowled at Donald and Goofy. "You two are the ones I should be blaming! Why weren't you watching for heartless _behind_ you?!"

Sora sweat dropped but didn't say anything, lest she invoke Chip's fury again.

"Hmm…" Jiminy frowned as he sat on Sora's shoulder, writing Sora's battle in his book. "Maybe we should get another gun on the outside of the ship for Sora to fire at enemies? We'd be a lot safer with two pairs of eyes after all."

"Right!" Dale shouted over Donald and Chip's furious shouting match. "It's settled! As compensation for your mistake, you have to get another gun installed on the ship so Sora can fire at heartless too and protect the ship _before_ it gets damaged!"

Donald looked about ready to argue but sensibly shut his mouth at the menacing glare Chip was sending his way.

Wonderland:

"We're here!" Donald smiled, pulling the brake of the gummi ship when he had landed it.

Unbuckling her seatbelt, Sora followed Donald and Goofy to the airlock while Jiminy wrote something down in his book on Goofy's head.

"So this is the new world: Wonderland!" Sora beamed as she waited for the airlock to open.

Would Riku or Kairi be on this world? Would Donald's and Goofy's king be there?

"Now, before we leave, we have to check both left and right" Donald said, looking as such with Goofy out the door. "See, we've been to the Coliseum sometimes so we know there are no dangers there but this is a new world! And we should always be careful."

"Hey guys?" Sora asked, voice a little strange.

"What?" Donald asked irritably as Goofy smiled back at Sora's wry-looking face.

"Does that 'have to be careful' thing also apply to looking down?" Sora asked, laughing awkwardly as Donald and Goofy finally looked down.

"Ahyuk." Goofy laughed.

And they all fell down the hole.

* * *

 **Me:** Um... Not that _I_ really care but... What does everybody think about 'Alice' being the male Alice's name? I've left it as the default but I want people's opinions before I post the chapter... And if you want Alice to be called a different name, I'm happy to hear suggestions.


	14. Wonderland Part 1

**Me:** Okay! Second world is Wonderland! I picked straws based off all the names given and got Ace for Alice's male name! Thank you all who gave me suggestions and thank you **mymag99** for the name Ace!

* * *

"Where are we?" Sora asked, looking around the very pink and circular room patterned so much it made it hard to see the hallway leading in some direction. "Did we…fall down the hole?

"Yep!" Goofy laughed, picking up his new shield that had fallen to the floor (he had purchased the shield from Cid's shop that morning). "We're always falling somehow."

"Really?" Sora asked, interested. "Well, I don't really _fall_ per say, but I do always lose in my fights to Riku…But I'm definitely going to beat him one day-that's why I'm going to train to become stronger! Maybe you both should train to _not_ fall?"

"Hmph." Donald huffed as he got up and dusted himself off (was there even dust on him? How could he think he was dirty when he fell on a clean floor?). "Easy for you to say."

Though Donald said it with a disgruntled voice, he was smiling a bit as he turned to Sora.

…Or at least he was until a white rabbit with amazingly bloodshot eyes barrelled into him.

But it got worse.

"I'm late! I'M LATE! I'M LATEEE!" the rabbit shouted, voice harassed and panicked as he picked himself off the floor and continued running down the hallway- _running right over Donald._

Donald twitched as footmarks covered him and as Sora and Goofy helped him up, they couldn't stop his reaction as he suddenly ran down the same path as the rabbit did, shouting all the way.

"HEY! Get back here!" Donald's voice echoed down the pink hallway and shrugging a bit, Sora decided to follow Donald (they _were_ meant to explore the world. Besides, Riku, Kairi or the king might be around-plus the hallway seemed the only way through the world so far so they had to go that way).

Goofy followed at a calmer pace like Sora, both feeling relatively comfortable in each other's presence.

"So, do you like this Riku fella? Or the Kairi fella?" Goofy asked suddenly and it startled Sora so much, she turned to stare at him in surprise while continuing to walk.

This proved to be a mistake, as she ran right into the door… _that got smaller and smaller._

"Wha…?" Sora's mouth dropped open as Goofy opened three doors one after another, each getting progressively smaller.

Sora managed to fit in with little effort but Goofy had some trouble getting through the door (luckily Sora managed to pull him through by grabbing his hands and tugging).

"Gawrsh, where's Donald?" Goofy asked, looking around the area of what appeared to be a bedroom of a young girl obsessed with too much pink, a teddy bear…flattened pots and objects…And a fireplace and chimney…?

"I'm not sure…" Sora frowned, wondering if she should sit on one of the chairs (they seemed a bit too small, even for one her height-Were they for dolls or something?).

"Anyway, which one of em' do ya like?" Goofy asked, smiling happily. "Or are ya' too embarrassed?"

Sora blushed, a scowl coming onto her face. "That's not it! I…I honestly never thought of them in that way…I mean…"

Goofy laughed as Sora blushed harder and seemed about ready to bury her head in her hands. "Don't worry! I'm only teasing ya'."

"I'll never be able to look them right in the face again!" Sora shook her head amused, knowing he was telling the truth about only playfully teasing her (she got enough teasing from Riku and Kairi themselves to know when they were joking around with her-Goofy acted in much the same manner-eyes twinkling as a grin split across his face).

A twang of pain caused her smile to die a bit.

She missed them.

No!

She was being stupid.

They had only been separated for around three or four days. She'd be seeing them soon. She shouldn't be acting like a moping kid (because she definitely _wasn't_ a kid!).

So, grinning at Goofy, she was about to say something when Donald jumped on her shoulder.

Literally.

A miniature Donald jumped on her shoulder, stomping his foot angrily as he repeatedly whacked Sora's cheek.

"I've been trying to get your attention forever!" Donald shouted, even as Sora's and Goofy's mouths dropped open.

"DONALD?!" both of them shouted at the same time as Sora grabbed Donald and placed him on the table.

He seemed exactly the same, except for his miniature appearance.

"What happened?" Sora asked, trying to keep a straight face as she stared at Donald.

He'd probably kill her if she laughed.

"That stupid rabbit was in so much of a hurry, he knocked the bottle away from the table and straight towards me, making it spill all over me and shrink me just like it did him!" Donald shouted angrily. "We're going to follow that rabbit and show him a piece of my mind! Hurry up and drink the drink! There's enough left for you both and some to spare! We need to go through that small doorknob!"

Sora looked at the small door on the opposite side of the three doors together. The small door was the size of her fist and would be easy to fit through. But…

"Are you _sure_ this drink will make us small…?" Sora mumbled, disbelieve etched into her voice.

Sure, she'd done a whole bunch of weird things before and magic _did_ exist. And sure, she'd played on her gaming console games where you could shrink stuff but…

It just didn't seem…

"There!" Donald smirked as Sora looked at herself, now much smaller but feeling like she was in a completely different room altogether because everything was so big.

Donald had thrown the bottle at her and Goofy, impatient because of Sora's indecisiveness.

"Come on!" Donald shouted, dragging them towards the golden doorknob. "We don't have all day!"

Sora sweat dropped but she continued looking around her, mouth hanging open as she finally realised what mice and ants might've felt like upon seeing everything so huge around them.

 _Oh…I hope I don't run across any ants when I'm this small…It'll be much bigger, that's for sure!_

"Ya' know, I thought we was meant to be looking for the king?" Goofy asked but Donald waved his hand.

"Yeah, of course I know that! But first I'm going to show that rabbit a piece of my mind!" Donald shouted. "Besides, the king is bound to be waiting for us somewhere nearby so he won't miss us!"

Sora sweat dropped but Goofy shrugged, going along with it (maybe he always did that?).

The trio walked up to the golden doorknob (the knob was its nose and the key insertion area was its mouth). It seemed to be sleeping (or ignoring them-they _had_ been talking loudly as they made their way to the doorknob. Nobody could sleep through their racket…right?).

"Heeeyyyyyyyyy!" Sora shouted after a few seconds of silence. "We want to get through!"

"Why're you bothering me?" the doorknob yawned, for all intent and purpose, looking like he wanted nothing more than to go back to sleep. "Leave me alone…"

"Just open the door to let us pass!" Donald shouted, rattling the door knob and causing the doorknob to flinch.

"Oh! That hurts!" he scowled, seemingly wide awake now as he glared at Donald's offending feathers that dared to twist his nose. "Very well then. Hurry up and go through-and let me get some sleep! I'm a very busy doorknob and how am I to get sleep if you keep bothering me?"

 _Very busy…_

Sora sweat dropped but followed Donald and Goofy inside the door, only to pause as they entered some sort of courtroom.

There was a hedge on either side of Sora, bordering the whole room with part of the hedge forming an archway above Sora. They walked further in the room, catching sight of numerous red spade and black diamond (or visa versa) cards holding axes and other weapons as they stood in a line.

Sora was mostly familiar with the structure of court rooms, simply because Kairi's father, being the mayor, was the one who was the judge and organised the whole things back on Destiny Islands.

Crimes on Destiny Island were very few-maybe one serious crime once every few years. But the real reason Sora was familiar with the court room was because after her parents had died, she had been asked to attend so the mayor could organise where Sora was to go (whether friends of Sora's parents would adopt her or whether she would go to an orphanage).

Even though Kairi's father tried to make it as comfortable as he could for Sora, Sora still didn't like courtrooms ever since.

Which was why she could easily tell that the blonde male around her age sitting in the defendant box felt the same way she did back then. His posture screamed awkwardness, wariness and a desperate want to simply _get out_ of the courtroom.

"…and for the attempted theft of my heart, I find you, Ace, guilty!" the huge woman sitting in the judge box shouted angrily. "Why? Because I say so!"

Sora's mouth dropped open in shock and she took a closer look at the woman, scowling a bit. She had a crown resting atop her black hair, some weird type of clothing that made her look like a really weird mushroom and a cane with a heart symbol at the top.

 _A queen…? But that gives her no right to find people guilty just because she says so! She's just a bully!_

"This is so unfair!" the blonde haired boy, Ace shouted, his blue eyes blazing with anger. "I haven't done anything wrong!"

"Silence!" the Queen roared. "You tried to steal my heart-"

Sora finally clicked, berating herself for earlier not picking up on the information about the attempted theft of the Queen's heart. She should have realised then what was really going on.

Before Donald or Goofy could stop her (she'd lucked out-Donald was staring angrily at the rabbit while Goofy was frowning in worry as he listened to the queen), Sora was running up to stand beside Ace who was dressed in weird clothes that looked similar to what the mayor wore during important meetings.

The only starling difference was that the boy's clothes were blue where Kairi's father wore black. Ace's clothes consisted of a white shirt and over that, a light blue jacket and matching light blue pants. The jacket had some sort of series of frills or strings or something that seemed to be linked to this world's type of society fashion (like Sora's world and their bright clothes).

"He's not the one you're looking for!" Sora shouted quickly, even as the Queen's face started to turn red with anger. " _ **We**_ know who the real culprits are!"

"Don't lump me with you, Sora!" Donald shouted, even as he came running towards Sora, his face absolutely livid.

 _Whoops…Guess I broke rule number 2…Follow the non-world interference rule…But I can't just sit around! Not when I know who the real culprits are! Besides, Leon already said the world orders have already been thrown in chaos because of the heartless! If I can help fix that and save some people in between, I_ _ **will**_ _!_

"Do you have any proof?" the Queen narrowed her eyes and Sora's eyes widened in shock.

 _I needed to bring proof?_

The card guards seemed to take a step towards Sora, as if waiting for their queen to give the order to attack. Swallowing a little, Sora wondered if she should just summon her keyblade to protect Ace (and quite possibly herself too).

But something else happened entirely.

"Hey!" Ace shouted suddenly from beside Sora and Sora quickly turned to look.

One of the cards grabbed Ace out from the defendant area and he was thrown into an oversized bird cage right next to the seat the queen was sitting in (which was at the top of a hedge to make her appear more menacing no doubt).

"Find your proof." The Queen sneered at the thought. "We will recommence the trail based off what proof you had."

Sora glared, clenching her fists as her eyes flickered to Ace, who seemed to be somewhat hopeful Sora would get him out.

"I. Can't. Believe. You!" Donald hissed to Sora a few seconds later and Sora frowned, ignoring him as she made her way to Ace (he had been making hand motions to get closer to speak).

"Don't try any cheap tricks." The ace of black diamond card warned as his axe moved dangerously towards Sora, who scowled in return.

"I won't!" Sora glared, side stepping the card and standing in front of Ace's cage.

"So do you really know who the culprit is?" Ace asked, his face grim.

Even as Donald was about to open his mouth to probably answer 'no', Sora beat him. "We do. Problem is, we have no idea where the evidence might be…"

Ace frowned, seemingly thinking before turning back to Sora, his blue gaze never wavering. "Find the Cheshire Cat. He'll be able to help. Go through that maze-you should find him somewhere in there."

Ace pointed towards the left edged hedge where another archway was, leading somewhere towards where the 'Cheshire Cat' probably was.

"Don't worry!" Sora nodded, grabbing Ace's hands. "I promise we'll get your name cleared!"

Ace gave a small smile and a nod, stepping back to stay near the edge of the cage. "Thank you. I'll be waiting."

"Gee, I don't think there's much else ya' can do." Goofy admitted and Ace shot a bigger smile at them.

 _True…stuck in a cage means he can't really go out for a walk or anything…_

"Good luck."

Sora, Goofy and (a rather reluctant) Donald headed for the path Ace pointed out to them. As soon as they entered under the archway, they came across a doorway which they opened to reveal a weird, forest-like room. There were huge mushrooms, very tall grass that was like 20 Sora heights high and rocks bigger than Sora (though Sora had seen a similar type of rock back on the play island).

"I can't believe you, Sora…" Donald muttered and Sora frowned at Donald.

"Didn't you want to help him?!" Sora frowned. "The heartless are already causing havoc here! We _know_ Ace is innocent! We can't just let this world structure blame something not of their world on somebody! That's not right! And what's the big deal anyway?! It's not like we said we were off-world or that it was the heartless!"

"I…I know it's not right." Donald admitted as the three of them sat on the nearby rocks. "However, every world is defined by its particular boundaries, within which some understanding of reality emerges as truth."

Sora nodded, understanding that much at least without the help of her trusty dictionary, Kairi.

"Two truths (the world's and how there are other worlds with heartless causing problems) cannot coexist. So this means from the introduction of foreign bodies there is conflict and chaos spawned. _That's_ why we limit our involvement in local affairs." Donald frowned.

"But gee, the heartless ain't really a local affair, is it?" Goofy asked, a hand to his lips.

"Yeah!" Sora nodded vigorously, sensing a win for her (she just wanted to show Donald _why_ she was doing what she was doing-and she didn't want him to be angry anymore). "And if your King's setting out to fix everything that's happening, surely he wouldn't mind if we helped by fixing the smaller problems!"

Donald still looked unsure but waved his hand. "Ah, Phooey... Alright, I guess we can help out…"

Sora grinned and hopped off the rock, just as another voice spoke-right next to her ear.

"So, you have come to a decision." A stripped purple cat appeared out of thin air, his head first and then the rest of him. "The Cheshire Cat knows all truths, and finds as yet no contradictions or chaos."

Sora sweat dropped as the cat grabbed his head and tucked it in under his elbow.

 _Other worlds really are pretty strange…I guess it's true that a lot of mysterious things can happen off world! Wait…_

"The Cheshire Cat?!" Sora gasped, even as the cat dropped a box (with a "Here you go").

…Of course the box just had to fall on Donald's head, setting him in an even worse mood than earlier. Even as Donald started cursing while rubbing his head, Sora and Goofy looked at each other and then the relatively small pink box.

"Within the box there lives _perhaps_ the truth you seek…or _perhaps_ there lives not? To trust or not to trust? I trust you'll decide…"

And with that, the Cheshire Cat vanished.

"Doesn't look very trustworthy to me…" Donald muttered angrily as he joined them in looking at the box. "Hurry up and open it!"

And then a soldier heartless popped out…

Sora slammed the box around it, concealing it within the innocent looking box again.

"A heartless?!" Donald quacked before grinning. "I suppose we could use this."

"Gee, do you think there's other pieces of evidence around?" Goofy asked and Sora grinned, her adventurous streak coming back.

"There's only one way to find out!" Sora ran a few metres through the area. "Besides, we've still got to search for Riku, Kairi and your king!"

"Yeah!" Donald smiled. "Your majesty! Where are you?"

"Rikuuuuuuuuuu? Kairriiiiiiiiiiiiii?" Sora shouted.

The only thing they successfully brought towards them was heartless (though they were quickly disposed of).

After a LOT of whacky, weird, meant-to-be-impossible things:

They had collected five pieces of evidence.

An gruelling hour of searching for the evidence of the heartless and the king, Riku or Kairi.

They only found the evidence.

"I…I thought he'd be here!" Donald said angrily, stomping his foot on the ground. "We've just been wasting our time!"

Sora suddenly had a realisation come to her. "…What if he wanted us to come to this world for a reason? What if he wanted us to stop the heartless from attacking the Queen and causing Ace to be found guilty?"

"Don't be ridiculous!" Donald huffed, though he continued to look thoughtful all throughout the walk back to the courtroom.

The area was mostly the same as when Sora, Donald and Goofy had left, except there was less card guards and the rabbit was getting yelled at by the Queen for being late. Ace was sitting down in his cage, looking fairly annoyed and tired but his eyes widened when he saw Sora coming back into the room.

"We've found five pieces of evidence!" Sora announced proudly as she and Goofy (Donald refused to touch any of the boxes because of what happened the first time) put them down in front of the Queen.

"Hmph!" the Queen sneered. "Is that all? Well, I'm still collecting mine! You will wait until I'm done collecting!"

"Wha-"

Sora was about to _ask 'what do you mean? I thought you already thought Ace was guilty?! Why would you need more evidence unless…you thought you were wrong!'_ but…

Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on who looks at it), Donald covered her tactless mouth before she could say anything and get them all in boiling water with the Queen.

* * *

 **Me:** So if people have read the manga, you'll start to see some elements of it in here (basically the explanations I'm giving about the world orders and bla, bla, bla)

 **Sora:** I can see why you use the manga... You can't even be bothered explaining your reasoning behind it.

 **Me:**...shut up Sora. Anyhow, I'm off to church and the next chapter will be posted in few hours!


	15. A Weirdly Funny Turn of Events

**Me:** This chapter is a more funny turn of events but I hope you all find it as funny as I did writing it...

* * *

Flopping down onto the ground, Sora put her hands behind her head and stared up at the ceiling in a hazy daydream so much like the ones she did on Destiny Islands back on the beach. She wondered how Riku and Kairi were. She'd seen some amazing worlds so far and met some really cool people but these heartless were causing problems. She hoped they were okay.

 _Maybe they're off visiting worlds as well?_

But Riku was no doubt getting into mischief already without her (she knew because usually after something new had been happened to them they'd revert back to their trouble-making ways) and Sora sighed, before wondering what the next world was going to be like.

She wondered if Riku and Kairi would be there.

"I'm bored…"

Surprisingly it was Ace who spoke and as Sora looked at him, he clapped his hands together, smiling as he looked at the 12 guards who had entered.

"Perfect! Let's play cards!" Ace smiled, his eyes lighting with excitement.

Sora knew of card games. They had that game back on her island which was why she'd been able to identify them as heart or diamond or spade cards. But…

"I don't think that would really work." Sora pointed out and Ace sighed. "They're too big."

"True." Ace nodded. "I guess I'm just bored… So, did the Cheshire Cat help you?"

Sora nodded, even as Donald snorted.

"He did! Hyuk!" Goofy laughed at Donald's irate expression but before Ace could say anything more, the Queen stood up.

"Alright! Let the trial begin!" the Queen roared. "This is my evidence!"

Four boxes appeared in front of her and the ones Sora collected were lifted into the air. Spinning the nine pieces of evidence around, the Queen put five on the ground (the other four mysteriously disappearing and Sora had a sneaking suspicion only one of the five boxes was actually her own evidence).

"Chose your evidence! This will decide the true culprit!" the queen ordered, her face an angry red tomato.

"WHAT?" Sora shouted. "You make us collect evidence only to rely on luck?!"

It wasn't only Donald and Goofy who seemed to wince as Sora blurted that out without thinking. Both Ace and the cards nearby seemed to wince at Sora's thoughtless comment.

"You DARE defy me?" the queen of hearts looked livid and Sora turned to Ace, who looked as sick as Sora felt.

 _If I chose the wrong one, Ace may be…NO! IF that's the case, I'll_ _ **fight**_ _to free Ace!_

Sweat trickled down the back of Sora's neck as everybody in the room trailed her every move with their eyes. She walked for a few moments around the end boxes before going to the box in the middle.

It wasn't the heartless that popped out of it.

It wasn't even Ace.

It was a hologram image of Donald.

"That can't be right…" Sora mumbled just as her mind finally connected the dots of _why_ the queen had went to collect 'evidence'.

 _The queen was gathering 'evidence' to blame us?!_

"Seize him! Off with his head!" The queen of hearts shouted, pointing at a very pale Donald. "You were the culprits all along!"

Everything moved slowly. Ace's cage was lifted into the air, and a cloth was put around to hide him from view. A card ran towards Donald, axe in hand and all the furniture in the room except the Queen's seat vanished, giving her a perfect view of everybody floundering around on the ground.

But Sora had no time to think, as Donald was now getting pursued by at least five of the cards, all holding dangerous weapons in their hand. Quicker than Sora has ever been in her life, she deflected one of the card's weapons from striking Donald, standing protectively in front of him.

"Sora?" Donald gasped, surprise etched onto his face as he turned around. "What're you doing?!"

Sora quickly kicked the card in the stomach, and it crumpled like paper on the ground.

"…All for one and one for all, remember?" Sora smiled at Donald. "We're friends! I won't let others hurt you!"

 _Even if you're grumpy a lot, you're still my friend!_

"I SENTENCE THEM TO DEATH! OFF WITH _ALL_ OF THEIR HEADS! " the queen bellowed.

Donald still looked shocked that Sora would jump in to save him but he recovered fast as Goofy stood beside the both of them. Guard cards surrounded them, holding either lances or axes in their hands.

"Let's do this!" Sora grinned, launching forward and attacking the cards easily.

They may have intelligence (unlike the heartless) however they tired easily which gave Sora the perfect advantage, seeing as she was quick and skilled because she had been sword fighting her whole life (not to mention the recent training she'd had).

It was over quicker than she'd thought. She'd at first been wondering how she was going to get out of the situation she was. After dodging attacks or parrying or just straight out charging at the enemy, she'd figured she'd come up with a plan then.

" _ **Sometimes, to defeat an enemy, you have to be quicker and smarter." Leon told her.**_

The words flashed in her brain again and her brain suddenly spewed out a plan, if not a little basic.

"Donald! Goofy!" Sora shouted, swinging in a circle to push the cards that had surrounded her away from her. "I'll distract them!"

 _You save Ace!_

She didn't need to shout out that last bit as they seemed to understand her message. Sora ran in front of them, attacking the cards following them before attacking the cards after her.

She was really struggling now, having to fight around 20 cards all by herself but suddenly the Queen's voice rang out, effectively cowering the cards and making them stop instantly in their attack against Sora.

Turning around, Sora sighed in relief as she saw Donald and Goofy standing next to the empty cage. But her relief soon turned to dread as she didn't see Ace anywhere near Donald and Goofy and they seemed just as worried as she was.

"WHERE'S ACE?" The Queen roared. "FIND HIM! ALL OF YOU-OR IT'LL BE OFF WITH ALL OF YOUR HEADS!"

Sora, Donald and Goofy didn't wait to stick around, running out the area as fast as they could and coming back to the room where they had first shrunk.

"So, you think Ace musta' been kidnapped or something?" Sora asked, frowning a bit. "Cause' there's no way he could have escaped. He had been guarded completely after all and it was only when the cloth hid him and the battle with the cards started that he vanished."

"I tell ya, the whole thing smells of heartless involvement." Donald frowned. "They could have easily made it to Ace's cage."

"You don't think they hurt him, do you?" Sora asked even as Goofy started speaking.

"Gawrsh, I'm sure Ace will be fine!" Goofy smiled.

"Still, I believe the heartless are behind this." Donald frowned. "There's no way they'd try to attack the queen and then just hide away. And we've only seen heartless outside the courtroom, almost as if they were trying to hide their existence from the queen and prevent Ace's freedom."

"But…How is that possible?" Sora asked, confused. "They seem too… _stupid_ and even a boss heartless still only commands other heartless to attack people. Are they even smart enough to pull of something so cleverly planned like this?"

Donald looked grimly at Sora. "That's the thing. I'm pretty sure the heartless aren't acting at random. I have a feeling something might be manipulating them…Something _**evil**_."

"Ace isn't around here. He's off, taken by the darkness. But the shadows are here." The Cheshire Cat said suddenly, appearing on top of Sora's head as he flicked with her spiky hair. "Did you know? In the brightest of flames dwells the darkest of shadows."

 _Taken by the darkness…? Does he mean heartless? They kidnapped him? Donald was right?! But what's this about the darkest of…Oh._

Sora's keyblade was out as soon as the huge heartless dropped from the ceiling and straight in front of them. It seemed like some sort of paper made puppet and as it gripped its two sticks in its hand, Sora yelped as they suddenly burst into raging hot flames, the intensity of the heat making her skin prickle even from the distance she was at.

"MOVE!" Sora shouted, even though she didn't need to say anything twice as the sticks smashed into where she, Donald and Goofy had been standing just milliseconds ago.

"Why did you set the heartless on us?!" Sora shouted, dodging yet another flaming stick as she ran closer to try and attack the heartless' legs (that were zigzagged and as pink as the rest of it, almost acting as a camouflaged in the over-pinkified room).

"Set it on you?" the Cheshire Cat grinned. "I say nay. I am merely helping those in need of assistance."

Then, with that, the Cheshire Cat vanished, leaving three exhausted people to fight a huge heartless after spending an hour searching for evidence, the king, Riku and Kairi, and fighting off heartless and spending another half an hour or so fighting dozens of cards to save Ace.

In other words, they were doomed.

"WHAAA!" Donald squawked out as he was hit with one of the heartless' weapons, slamming into the table and causing it to topple over and hiding him from view (luckily it only fell sideways so it didn't actually _fall_ on Donald but it was still a close call).

"Donald!" Sora shouted, standing near Goofy even as her breath came out in short gasps.

 _I'm getting tired…_

Shaking away the exhaustion, Sora frowned and shot forward. "I've defeated giant heartless, a giant dog and dozens of smaller heartless! I ain't gonna' let you defeat me!"

 _I've still got to find my friends and have that rematch with Riku!_

But before Sora could reach the boss heartless, its flames grew brighter and came towards her. Sora's eyes widened as she saw the flames get closer and closer, so hot it would no doubt burn her to a crisp.

…And then the table squished the heartless, destroying it.

Wait.

"Wha…?" Sora mumbled, her mouth dropping open as she saw a tall Donald standing over the table he had used to defeat the heartless. "…How…?"

Donald quacked sheepishly. "After that rabbit knocked me down, before I drank the smaller potion, I poured some of the bigger potion in my water bottle in order to get my revenge. I would've been normal size and looked menacing…wak, wak, wak…I never thought it would come in handy for this though."

"Whattttttttttttt?!" Sora complained. "Why didn't you do that earlier?!"

"I forgot!" Donald shouted. "You try fighting a huge heartless and thinking about something you did earlier!"

"What's with all this ruckas?!"

The three of them turned to the doorknob that had just woken up (he slept through the whole battle and only wakes up now?!). He yawned widely and as he yawned again, a keyhole in his mouth flashed white for a second.

The next moment, Sora's keyblade was in her hands and was shooting up towards the doorknob's mouth automatically, shooting a beam of white light out her keyblade and into the keyhole.

There was an audible 'click' and then the doorknob closed his mouth, eyes drooping shut as he fell asleep again.

"…What was that?" Sora frowned, turning to Goofy (Donald was crouching behind them as he was too big to get any closer without threat of stepping on them).

"Gee, I'm not sure." Goofy frowned. "Maybe we should go ask Leon?"

But before any decisions could be made, something fell out the doorknob. It was green and looked like some sort of gem.

"Ahyuk! A gummi block!" Goofy smiled, picking up the small piece and elaborating at Sora's confused expression.

"It's a mechanical part from another gummi ship, kinda' like the gummi ship we use!" Goofy said.

Donald then picked up the potion labelled 'normal size', pouring some on Goofy and Sora, who quickly returned to their normal height.

"You don't think…?!" Sora gasped and Donald and Goofy nodded.

"The King must've left this for us!" Donald shouted in glee. "We must've just missed him!"

"Let's go back to Traverse Town and ask Cid what it is!" Sora smiled, quickly rushing back the way they had first come from. "And while we're at it, we'll ask Leon about that 'click' we heard!"

It was only when they made it back to the room they'd first come from that Sora realised they'd _fallen_ in the hole and there seemed to be no stairs leading upwards and out of it.

"Don't worry!" Donald smiled. "The gummi ship has a teleportation thing which can transport us to the ship. The ship usually hovers over the world invisible so nobody notices and the teleportation thing is just encase somebody might notice."

Sora relaxed and Donald pressed a button on his staff.

There was a beam of light and the next second Sora found herself on the ship, Chip and Dale coming towards them.

If anyone had been looking they would have seen a bright beam shoot from the ground up into the sky.

"Back to Traverse Town!" Donald shouted.

"For answers AND a new gun on the ship!" Chip cheered.

Sora grinned as everyone laughed before staring out the window.

 _Don't worry Ace…I'll find you too! Riku, Kairi, Ace…the king…We'll definitely find you all!_

* * *

 **Me:** We're done for Wonderland!


	16. Argument

**Me:** Okay! We have another chapter up! Tensions run high and we see a teeny-tiny insight to Riku's current situation ( **Shiranai Atsune** requested it so I hope you like and so does everybody else)

 **Sora:** What is a mouses favorite game?

 **Me:** Parchees-

 **Riku:** Don't finish that.

* * *

Riku's POV: Somewhere undetermined

"I got one of them for you. Now where's Sora and Kairi?" Riku scowled, not trusting the witch one bit as she and her associates merely chuckled.

"Patience, dear child." The witch tried to sound soothing but Riku glared in disgust. "We have another job for you to do..."

Riku bit back a snarky remark. He needed to find Sora and Kairi and if helping some craggy old crone kidnap a few people helped achieve his goals… He'd take it.

 _I wonder if they're together on the same world…_

Riku's mood only seemed to get worse at this. He wanted to be with his friends but the thought of Sora and Kairi having fun when he wasn't there seemed to dig a hole in his heart, as if they would forget about him if he wasn't there. No, he would find them and they would explore the worlds together as they all promised.

The three of them. No more, no less.

Sora's POV:

As soon as they landed back in Traverse Town Sora, Donald and Goofy were rushing out the gummi ship, intent on getting as far away from Chip and Dale as possible.

"YOU'D BETTER GET THAT GUN ADDED ON! AND DON'T YOU DARE COME BACK WITHOUT SOME CLEANING SUPPLYS!"

Flashback:

Chip was nearly frothing at the mouth in anger. He had calmed down mostly after Sora had destroyed part of the gummi ship by accident and seemed placated by the promise of a new gun added to the outside of the gummi ship.

Of course, he was calm only until they all heard a noise in the pitcock and found 12 puppies rolling around everywhere and causing a mess (Sora could even swear she smelt dog urine).

Chip exploded.

"I SPEND AGES CLEANING UP AND LOOK WHAT THEY DID! HOW DID THESE DOGS EVEN GET ON THE SHIP?!"

"Garwsh, I think Pluto went exploring himself in Wonderland." Goofy laughed, unperturbed to Chip's glare.

"Well, you think they're part of the Dalmatian litter back in Traverse Town?" Sora asked as she held out her hand and the puppies crowded near her, tails wagging and noses sniffing. "I mean, they even have the same collars…"

"Hmph." Donald frowned, also angry (repairs and no doubt cleaning equipment would mean more money costs and lost time). "Who cares? We should've just left them in Wonderland! They're not our problem!"

Sora frowned, wanting to say something to Donald but he'd already went back to driving the gummi ship, Dale not being able to drive it all by himself. Turning back to the puppies, Sora grinned as she patted one of their heads.

"Don't worry. Donald doesn't mean that…I think." Sora thought for a second ( _did_ he mean it?). "Well, you're with us now and it'll take longer to go back to Wonderland than to Traverse Town so you'll be able to see your parents again!...And truthfully, I don't think Donald's that mean!"

The puppies yapped happily and, seeing as Sora didn't really have any duties right now to do on the ship, decided she'd stay with the puppies and play with them.

…Of course, when the heartless came Sora was stumbling all over her face as the gummi ship swerved left and right. But at least they weren't spinning like on their trip to Wonderland. The puppies and she could have been really hurt.

End Flashback

The trio (with Jiminy busy writing in his journal on Sora's shoulder as he seemed to like resting on her shoulder) walked down the cobble street of Traverse Town and towards Cid shop first (it was late afternoon but Cid's shop would still be open…probably).

"Hey kid" Cid grinned as he saw her walk in (he was at the counter polishing the glass case covering a huge blue crystal.

"That's Sora!" Sora said automatically, even as Cid smiled as if expecting that response. "…gramps."

Cid twitched but before they could continue their banter, Donald was cutting through them, still in a bad mood from the earlier episode and the waste of 'time and money' (Sora had heard him mumble it enough times on the way to Cid's shop to know he was _really_ annoyed).

"That's great and all but we need the gummi ship repaired and a new gun added on for Sora to control from the third seat!" Donald shouted, fingers twitching as he put some munny on the table as if he wanted nothing more than to pull them back. "And if you have any cleaning supplies, that will be good too."

Cid nodded as he took out his toothpick, though he looked curious at their selection. "So what hap-"

He was about to continue but as he saw Goofy's and Sora's heads shaking furiously in a 'no' fashion, he just closed his eyes and nodded.

"Heh. Never mind." Cid said, grabbing the cleaning supplies. "I'll take it to ya' ship. You guys go rest up. I'll have it fixed and added in an hour-three hours max depending on the damage."

Cid pocketed his payment before leaving the store, Donald stomping furiously towards the inn as he was once more muttering about 'wasting time'. They met Yuffie on the way (she was patrolling the area encase of heartless) and after a promise to help out with patrolling after they had gotten something to eat, they continued to the inn and placed their bags on their beds.

"I'm going to bed!" Donald announced, jaw tense.

Both Sora and Goofy stared at each other, worried frowns on their faces. However, they decided to leave Donald because he was obviously still angry and an angry Donald was something Sora was not willing to face, courageous or not.

After a furious battle with a lid from a jar of jam (yes-she lost the battle), Sora decided to have peanut butter on toast instead (Aerith had gotten them food and put it in the fridge under a part labelled 'Sora, Donald and Goofy').

"So…" Sora started as she munched on her toast. "Should we ask Leon after Donald wakes up or now?"

"Gee, I'm not sure." Goofy thought. "Donald seems pretty angry and might get madder if we waste time and ask him later but…"

"He might also get mad if we ask while he's still asleep…" Sora nodded, sighing in aggravation. "ARGH! Why's he have to be grumpy?! It's not like it's the end of the world! It's just a bit of money!"

"It's probably more expensive than you think."

Both Sora and Goofy looked up as Aerith entered the room, a tray in her hands with five cups filled with Barley Tea (she seemed to love making them for everyone).

"Hey Aerith!" Sora grinned as she swung her legs like a kid (even though she _wasn't_ one). "We just got back from Wonderland and it was so cool but Donald's pretty mad because he says we're wasting time and money to fix the ship but we can't really go anywhere if the ship's wrecked so I don't get why he's gotta' be so angry!"

Aerith nodded, taking in Sora's babble as she sat down at the table after handing Goofy his tea as well. "Sora, you know that it costs money to pay for repairs, for food and for a room to sleep in, right?"

Sora nodded.

That was how some houses worked on Destiny Islands. If somebody wanted to live in the north of the village during fishing season, they'd rent a house or a room to be close to the area where the most fish were.

"Well, right now Donald, you and Goofy are on a quest." Aerith explained gently as she sipped her barley tea. "You don't have the time to get a job and get more money. So Donald's worried the money will run out before you complete your quest and that you won't complete your quest in time."

"Oh…" Sora frowned and nodded, looking down slightly ashamed at the table.

She hadn't thought of that.

Even if she wasn't on her world anymore, she'd forgotten that money was still needed. And Donald and Goofy's king _did_ seem rushed for time.

"Gawrsh Sora. Don't look so worried. We'll manage." Goofy finally spoke. "The heartless drop items that we usually sell to moogles for a high price-that's how we get money to pay for everything. I think Donald's just worried because we're a little too close to the budget limit."

"That's right." Aerith smiled. "Though if you need help, you can always ask us."

Sora nodded, feeling some sense of relief that at least they _did_ have some form of getting money and help if they needed it.

"Alright!" Sora said, standing up and heading towards the exit. "I'm going to go find Yuffie and help out with the patrolling! Goofy, do ya' wanna find Leon and ask him about the…OH! We forgot to give Cid that weird gummi piece to inspect!"

"Don't worry!" Goofy nodded, getting up and pulling out the green gummi piece. "I'll go to the ship now! See ya'!"

Sora nodded and she said goodbye to Aerith before heading outside and towards the first district where Yuffie was patrolling last.

"Roaf!"

Pluto ran up to her, the Dalmatian puppies nowhere in sight. Sora figured that Pluto must've already led them back home. Donald had ordered Pluto straight away upon entering Traverse Town to take them home, seeing as Pluto was the one who brought them on board the ship.

After a pat on a head and a request to find Yuffie for her, Pluto was off with Sora following behind and knocking the few heartless that were stupid enough to appear right where she could see them (She was super awesome now as she'd defeated a huge three headed dog, a spinning huge heartless armour, a huge heartless version of herself and so…heartless were never going to beat her!).

Sometime later…

Surprisingly, patrolling wasn't as boring as Sora had feared. Sure, because there hadn't been that many heartless around, Sora had thought she would just be walking around for a while but instead, heartless did appear and she got (even if _she_ didn't need it) some practice in to fight.

It was just on 7pm when Goofy called her back to the inn because Cid was finished. She was in the third district by now, having been ambushed by a whole bunch of heartless and only having to use one potion to heal her minor wounds. As such, she felt a little sore but it was nothing new (she and Riku _did_ have play fights which obviously meant they'd come out with some bruises).

Putting her keyblade away (she just willed it to vanish and it did), Sora nodded to Goofy and the two of them walked back towards the second district, through the dark town filled with glittering lights and towards the inn.

"What about the gummi piece?" Sora asked Goofy, who walked beside Sora with his casual slack pose.

"It's a world coordinate!" Goofy smiled happily. "Cid's installed a new world on our system!"

 _So the king gave us more coordinates to another world…? Does that mean…?!_

"Awesome! We're going to another world!" Sora cheered, fist pumping the air before turning to Goofy. "Hey, if your king knows I'm with you now, ya' think he'll give us coordinates to a world Riku and Kairi might be on too?"

"Hyuk! I'm sure the king's also helping look for ya' friends!" Goofy nodded. "Don't worry about it! We'll find your pals!"

Sora smiled as they walked into the inn.

"You're back." Leon said as soon as they entered the kitchen. "How was your exploration?"

"Great!" Sora grinned as she sat down and made some peanut butter on toast again (it seemed Sora's stomach was still the same bottomless pit no matter what world she was on). "We defeated lots of heartless n' stuff and found some puppies that belonged to the huge Dalmatian litter!"

"Is that so?" Leon muttered, taking a sip of his water as Goofy spoke.

"Yeah, but ah, Donald sure don't seem happy." Goofy said, a hand coming to his lips.

"That's cause' he had a bad day today!" Sora frowned. "Hopefully he'll feel better when we set out to the next world."

"Ah Leon?" Goofy asked as Leon's eyes moved to him. "Sora's keyblade did somefin' funny earlier on."

Leon seemed intrigued (he moved a bit closer to hear better-that was about all Sora could tell about how he was more interested) and Sora nodded, almost forgetting to tell him the reasons she wanted to see him. "Oh yeah! I forgot to tell you! My keyblade shot a beam out into this keyhole shaped thingy-ma-bob and there was a click or something-it _sounded_ like a click anyway…Do ya' know what that was?"

Rain started to lightly pour outside and Sora nearly jumped, having forgotten that while the sun didn't shine in Traverse Town, it must've still rained. It seemed almost weird as back on Destiny Islands it mostly rained during the day in winter or autumn (mostly it only rained at night time when there were storms).

Leon brought his hands together as he stared at Sora. "There is a keyhole for every world…And each one leads to the heart of that world."

So…What did he mean by that? That worlds have hearts as well? And they were locked up or something?

"Umm…." Sora tried to keep the confusion off her face but upon seeing Goofy just as confused, she decided to ask anyway. "And that means…?"

Leon scowled as he continued, the thought obviously hitting a sore spot for him as he explained. "The heartless enter through the keyhole and do something to the world's core."

 _The heartless again?! What do they have to do with anything?_

"What happens to the world?" Sora frowned.

"In the end, it disappears." Aerith sighed as she came into the room with more Barley Tea. "It happened to our home world around eight years ago."

Sora's mouth fell open and she felt a pang of loss for Destiny Island too.

The heartless caused her world to disappear. And Leon's and Aerith's and Yuffie's and Cid's world too! Not to mention a lot…no, _all_ of the other inhabitants of Traverse Town lost their worlds to the heartless-to the darkness.

The heartless were what caused Riku and Kairi to be separated from her.

Sora didn't have any more time to think as Leon still had an explanation to do.

" _That_ is the reason why your key is so important." Leon stated. "Your keyblade can lock the keyholes and prevent any heartless from being able to destroy the worlds."

Sora swallowed a little, finally realising the _responsibilities_ she hadn't even realised she'd had with wielding the keyblade.

There were worlds out there in danger and she had been treating everything like a game, wanting to just get stronger to defeat Riku and find her friends and then go on her merry way. Sure, she'd wanted to help people out but…She hadn't really seen what was so good about the keyblade until now. She'd even thought the 'Chosen One' would've been such a cool title and that was all...

A heavy silence filled the room as both Sora and Goofy digested the information and Aerith and Leon seemed more than willing to let them mull over their thoughts.

"Well…" Goofy broke the silence with a smile. "If the king's giving us new coordinates an' all, then he must know what worlds are in danger and sending us to them to protect them, right?"

Leon nodded, folding his arms as he once more stared at Sora. " _That_ is a possibility. Sora, find those keyholes and protect the worlds."

Sora nodded, eyes still looking down at the table.

Would she really be able to…?

And then Goofy was behind her, fingers pulling her cheek and mouth into a smile and making her look overall weird as Leon and Aerith just stared (Leon- shocked and Aerith-amused).

"Don't worry, remember?" Goofy smiled. "Happy faces! And you have Donald and me with ya' too! We'll definitely help ya' out!"

Sora smiled a little as she looked up at Goofy's smiling face. "…Thanks Goofy."

What was she so scared about again?

When had _she_ -the awesome Sora-ever let fear stop her?! The king was already helping them out a lot and obviously trusted in her and the keyblade _did_ choose her for a reason! Not to mention she _was_ courageous and hadn't let fear stop her fighting a big monstrous dog so she wouldn't let fear stop her from protecting worlds either!

"Alright! While I'm searching for Riku and Kairi and the king, I'm going to lock all the keyholes!" Sora grinned, energy flowing back into her as her 'happy bubble' was reunited. "Oh-but I guess we'll have ta' find that boy, Ace, as well!"

"What do you mean?" Leon asked as Donald finally walked into the room, still as grumpy as before. "What happened?"

"He disappeared" Sora explained. "Donald thinks the heartless are behind it and the Cheshire Cat hinted at that too! So we're going to look for Ace too!"

"Hmph." Donald frowned but didn't say anything more.

Leon's face seemed to change from neutral (half-scowling, half-blank) to pensive in an instant at what Sora said and he exchanged glances with Aerith, who seemed just as worried. Standing up, Leon finished his Barley Tea (with a grimace at the taste of it) and turned back to the trio.

"Let us look into this." Leon said, his voice tense. "You just focus on sealing the keyholes."

Sora nodded, a little surprised that he seemed unnerved by Ace's disappearance. And then she turned to Donald to break the news to him about what they had discussed.

Back to the Ship:

"Great! You're back!" Dale smiled as he jumped on Sora's shoulder. "Are we going to the next world?"

"Yeah…" Sora yawned, a little sleepily. "I mean, we don't really have time to relax…."

"Alright!" Donald shouted, getting into his pilot's seat. "Let's go!"

"Roaf!" Pluto shot an affirmative from the dog seat in the corner of the ship control area.

Sora sat down in her seat and buckled up, nerves and bubbles appearing in her chest as she saw the controler that would move the gun and fire at heartless.

 _Oh yeah! Gaming consoles made real!_

Would she find Riku or Kairi on this new world?

Riku seemed to have vanished in that weird pool of darkness that swallowed him up and Kairi just seemed to vanish but quite possibly Sora could have just missed in trying to grab him and Kairi may have been sucked up into that giant hole before Sora even noticed.

She was getting kinda' worried about them but for some reason she just _knew_ they were okay (they were both smart enough to take care of herself).

Still…She couldn't help but worry…

And then Chip and Dale poked two sticks into her mouth, forcing her cheeks up.

"Smile Sora!" Chip said.

"Smile! Think happy thoughts!" Dale grinned.

Sora burst out laughing as she pulled out the sticks from her mouth and nodded. "Hehe…Sorry… I'm just a bit worried about them. But you're right! No use worrying when there's still work to be done!"

"Great! Now hurry up and start shooting!" Donald quacked out. "NOW!"

Sora rolled her eyes but nodded, looking on the screen Cid had installed and aiming the laser gun at the heartless ships.

BAM!

"Gawrsh!" Goofy yelped as the heartless ship crashed into another and cleared the path for Donald to travel freely. "You're really good at this Sora!"

"Hehe!" Sora smiled as she scratched the back of her head sheepishly. "That's because I played games like this with Riku all the time on our gaming console! You can consider me an expert!"

 _Even though I never beat Riku…_

"Well, I'd really like to see this gaming console of yours." Jiminy smiled, jumping onto her shoulder and holding out his book. "So I can describe where you got your skills from. What does it look like?"

And Sora was off, explaining all about gaming consoles and the person who invented them-because she'd always been able to remember things that interested her (which was why she always fell asleep in class and always forgot to do her homework-because it was _boring_ ).

Half an hour later…

They arrived at the new world earlier than expected but Sora pinned it down to the fact that she was able to defeat the heartless that threatened to delay them. Craning her neck, Sora peered down at the world and was surprised to find a jungle of some sort-huge waterfalls and all.

It reminded her a bit of the play island, especially with the waterfall and trees to hide people from view (whenever she used to play hide and seek as a child, the trees were always good cover).

"Let's go." Donald huffed and Sora nodded.

However, unlike what she was expecting, Donald was pulling _away_ from the world.

"HEY! What're you doing?!" Sora shouted, relaxing slightly as Donald paused his driving to look at her, scowling.

"There's no way the king's on a backwater place like that!" Donald huffed. "We got here ten minutes earlier than expected so I don't think this is the right world. We're moving on."

"Wait!" Sora shouted again, causing Donald to pause again from moving the ship. "We still need to check there! Riku and Kairi might be there!"

Donald twitched, even as Goofy put a hand to his lips as if he suspected what was going to happen.

"We don't have time to go down there! Forget it! We're on an important mission!" Donald quacked and as he was about to turn the wheel again, Sora was suddenly out of her seat, anger radiating off of her as she grabbed the wheel.

"We're not leaving yet! The reason we got here earlier is because there was hardly any heartless blocking our way!" Sora shouted. "Besides, I just want to check if they're there! Stop being selfish!"

Donald snapped. "How am I being selfish when you're the one who only cares about finding your friends instead of actually helping us?!"

"What?!" Sora shouted back as the rest of the occupants watched the exchange, mouths open in shock. "That's not true! Of course I want to help find your king!"

"Oh yeah?!" Donald huffed. "I bet after you found your friends, you would have left us!"

Sora paused, stunned into silence.

She, she would've left them when she'd found Riku and Kairi but she figured their king would've been found by then too…But…If she had a choice to stay with Riku and Kairi or help find the king as well…

 _I would help! But Donald…With Donald around…Donald and his grouchy meanness!_

"You're right!" Sora shouted, glaring at Donald who seemed hurt for a second (his eyes widened and he froze). "I think I _would_ just leave! You're such a bully that I would rather stay with my _real_ friends!"

There was a tense silence as Donald's rage slowly grew bigger and bigger, his eyes a furious red. And then he went to grab the wheel to take them away from the world and Sora's hands flew out from her faster than she could think.

"L-Let go!" Donald shouted, even as Chip and Dale started shouting for them to stop. "A-AHH! Don't press that-"

Sora, having lost her balance, put her hand out to catch her fall.

Only to press a button instead.

The gummi ship started to shake.

Donald luckily was still in his seat.

Sora however was not.

The airlock opened and she was thrown outside as the gummi ship spun on an angle and towards the jungle world.

The last thing Sora saw as she fell out the ship and down into the jungle world below her was Donald's panicked face as he extended an arm to try and grab her.

And then her world went black.

* * *

 **Me:** Okay! we all know Tarzan's coming up but after this the worlds will not follow the normal system. Feel free to guess what the next world after Tarzan (and Traverse Town incident) will be!


	17. Deep Jungle Part 1

**Me:** We got another chapter up! Writing this one has been a bit of a favorite for me!

* * *

-Late Afternoon-

Sora groaned as she opened her eyes. Her back hurt- the whole left side of her body hurt actually. She looked up to see herself in a wooden house (the roof had a hole in it which was probably caused by her crude entrance).

Sora blinked a few times, wondering how she was even alive after falling from the gummi ship and then a brief flash came back to her mind of Donald holding out his hand as if to grab her and pull her back into the ship.

 _He must've cast a spell…_

Sora frowned, shaking her head of Donald.

He was still a bully and most likely the only reason he helped her was because he needed her to help find the king!

Groaning as she got up, Sora realised it wasn't only her bruised body causing her discomfort (because there wasn't really any other word for it because nothing was broken-she was just a little sore). She also had a crick in her neck and her limbs felt stiff with cold.

 _How long have I been unconscious…?_

Looking around, Sora realised the house must've been uninhabited.

The windows were broken, as was the staircase and the few wooden crates and barrels in the house were covered in dust and empty. In fact, there wasn't even a door at the front of the house. Sitting down on the ground, Sora decided she'd just eat something for now and figure out everything after (she was seriously hungry).

Later…

"Now…Where exactly am I?" Sora mumbled, getting up and heading outside.

The jungle was different to what she'd thought it would be like-noisier and more green, it smelt of a fresh forest like the ones on Destiny Islands were people picked wild berries and such. Still, it was getting late and Sora wondered where Donald and Goofy were. Were they oka-…

No.

Sora frowned, clenching her fists as she remembered Donald from earlier.

She ignored the brief flash of guilt at what she'd said to Donald too. Right now she had more _important_ things to do. She needed to find some people who lived her and ask if they'd seen her friends: Riku and Kairi.

Her main priority was finding her friends.

…Her _real_ friends.

Sora tried to push out the image of Donald and Goofy's face appearing with Riku's and Kairi's when she thought of real friends.

Evening was fast approaching and Sora yawned, feeling a flash of worry as neither Donald nor Goofy had found her yet.

 _Were they okay…? Maybe I should go looking…Wait…That's a bad idea right now…It's nearing dark and I don't think It's safe to walk around in a jungle at night. I'll rest here for tonight and I'll explore tomorrow morning._

Sora shivered as she curled up on one of the corners of the house, hugging her jacket to her body tightly.

 _Man, it's cold here. If only Donald could conjure a fire-_

 _No. I don't need him._

Going to sleep proved rather difficult, as Sora's thoughts kept wandering back to Donald and Goofy, no matter how much she tried not to. She briefly wondered if Leon and the others were worried they hadn't come back today (they always came back at the end of each day to rest at the Inn).

-The next day-

Sora woke up shivering. As she stood up quickly, Sora knew it wasn't because of the cold she was shivering.

Something was in the area. And she somehow did not think it was friendly.

Looking around, she saw the barrels and nothing was different. A flash of movement near the broken window caught her eyes. Her head snapped in that direction, but nothing was there. But she had definitely seen the movement.

Stepping warily into the middle of the room and away from the windows, Sora looked around tensely for any signs of movement.

A growl.

Sora had little time to summon her keyblade while looking up when a huge cat creature launched itself at her from one of the roof beams above her.

"Omph!"

The force of the cat sent her sprawling to the ground, but before it could seriously maim her, Sora used her keyblade to whack it across the face. It hissed in pain before it began circling Sora, eyes the gaze of a predator.

Sora narrowed her eyes. This wasn't a heartless. The big cat could formulate plans. She had to be careful. But it still was an animal! She could defeat it!

The cat lunged again and Sora yelped as she wasn't expecting it, ducking as the cat flew over her head, crashing into a few barrels under the stairs.

She quickly used her keyblade as it lunged at her again and she sent it spinning back under the stairs, scattering smoke around and causing Sora to cough a little as the dust invaded her nostrils.

Blinking a little, Sora tried to see through the smoke where the cat was and whether she had defeated it or not but so far, she couldn't see anything.

There was silence for a few seconds.

"RAORRRRRRRRRRR!" the cat yowled out, claws out and eyes fixed on Sora's neck, as if to aim for the kill.

Sora jumped back, quickly whacking the keyblade into the big cat as her heart pumped buckets of blood into her to fuel her adrenaline rush. Turning, she was just about to run out the house when something appeared.

Someone.

A man.

He landed with a light thud on the floor, a (what looked like a) carved spear in his hands and dreadlocks flicking into his face as he ran at the big cat. His face seemed stony and as Sora stood, watching the battle in amazement, the man's face didn't change at all as he used pure physical strength to force the cat down to the ground.

It hissed suddenly, teeth gleaming but as the man glared back and took a menacing step forward, the cat seemed to tense before running to the window and jumping straight out, breaking what little pieces of window glass were left in it.

"Whoa…!" Sora gasped, unable to believe that the man had _intimidated_ that huge cat into fleeing.

Sure, she would've been able to beat it up till it fainted but he'd managed to _scare_ the cat away and cats (the ones on Destiny Islands of course) weren't afraid of _anything._ Maybe huge cats like the one Sora just faced didn't have the same instincts as the cats of Sora's island (even though the cats on Destiny Islands were much smaller)?

The man turned to her and Sora got a good look at his face. Like she'd at first thought, his face seemed stony but he tilted his head to regard her curiously, almost like how a child studies an animal they have never seen before.

He was wearing a loincloth and was bare-chested. Almost as if that was a reminder, Sora frowned as the tropical weather was finally being noticed by her.

It was hot, humid like summer back on Destiny Islands.

 _Man, I wish Riku and Kairi were here. This reminds me a bit of the tree house back on the play island…_

"Sabor. Danger."

Sora blinked, having almost forgotten the strange man was still with her and had still been regarding her curiously while she thought.

"Hehe…I know…" Sora scratched the back of her head nervously.

 _So…That cat's really called a sabor? So it's not a cat after all…Still, it looks like a cat…_

The man continued to stare at her and Sora sweat dropped. "Um…Thank you…?"

It came out more like a question but the man nodded.

"Thank you." he repeated.

Sora sweat dropped again.

 _Wait! Maybe I can ask him where I am!_

"Where is this place?" Sora asked and the man tilted his head to the side.

"This place, this place." The man repeated.

Sora frowned, looking around to see if there was maybe somebody who would magically provide all the answers.

Unfortunately, there was nobody there.

 _Well…I guess I'll just have to explore then! It is morning, after all!…but I might as well give it a try first…_

"Have you seen my friends?" she asked and the man's eyes seemed to sparkle with something and Sora felt a brief bloom of hope in her chest.

"Friends." Repeated the man, looking thoughtful (his eyes fell to the ground and his eyebrows were drawn together-the first other facial expression Sora had seen him wear).

"Yeah! My friends!" Sora said quickly and eagerly. "The loud one is Dona-…"

The bloom of hope died in her chest and was replaced with a different bloom of hope.

Riku and Kairi. _They_ were her goal. Donald had already so much as said he wasn't her friend when he refused to help her.

' _But I'm the one who was mean to him and made him feel like I didn't even think of him as a friend...'_ a little voice in the back of her mind reminded her, making the guilt rise up again.

But…None of this would've happened if he'd just landed the ship!

' _I'm the one who grabbed the wheel and accidently pressed the button…'_

They weren't friends.

" _ **What're those?" Sora asked, looking at the wall behind her to her left and seeing a blackboard with a whole bunch of names. "Olympus Coliseum Competitors?"**_

" _ **Yep." Goofy smiled. "Garwsh, maybe we should try to get our names up there?"**_

" _ **Hehe, that would be awesome!" Sora grinned back even as Donald had stars in his eyes as he eagerly rubbed his hands together.**_

" _ **And we'd probably win a trophy or maybe even some money! Wak, wak, wak!" Donald laughed.**_

" _ **Well, let's go!" Sora said eagerly, already running inside the next set of doors (all the while looking awestruck at the huge statues). "I'm going to get super strong and kick Riku's butt! I'll show him that I can beat him!"**_

" _ **Hey, wait for me!" Donald grinned as they all caught up to her and she shot them a smile.**_

They weren't.

 _ **Cloud quickly blocked Sora's attacks and even though Sora was putting as much pressure as she could into the attack, he easily sent her flying away.**_

" _ **Oww…" Sora mumbled as Donald cheered them on from the sidelines (once out of the ring, he was disqualified and wouldn't win unless his team won).**_

' _ **Don't worry Donald! I'll definitely win for us and we can all enter the tournament!' Sora thought.**_

There was no way.

" _ **HEY! You stupid mutt!" Sora shouted without thinking and the three heads suddenly swerved to her, giving Hercules the time he needed to escape away from the dog and towards safety.**_

 _ **Swallowing slowly, she gripped her keyblade tightly.**_

" _ **Don't worry Sora! We'll help!" Donald said as he and Goofy stopped right next to Sora, their staff and a bin lid as a makeshift weapon(Goofy's shield had been cut up by Cloud earlier) at the ready.**_

 _ **Sora nodded, feeling more confident with her new friends beside her. "Let's go!"**_

Not with a mean, selfish duck like Donald…

" _ **Seize him! Off with his head!" The queen of hearts shouted, pointing at a very pale Donald. "You were the culprits all along!"**_

 _ **Everything moved slowly. Ace's cage was lifted into the air, and a cloth was put around to hide him from view. A card ran towards Donald, axe in hand and all the furniture in the room except the Queen's seat vanished, giving her a perfect view of everybody floundering around on the ground.**_

 _ **But Sora had no time to think, as Donald was now getting pursued by at least five of the cards, all holding dangerous weapons in their hand. Quicker than Sora has ever been in her life, she deflected one of the card's weapons from striking Donald, standing protectively in front of him.**_

" _ **Sora?" Donald gasped, surprise etched onto his face as he turned around. "What're you doing?!"**_

 _ **Sora quickly kicked the card in the stomach, and it crumpled like paper on the ground.**_

"… _ **All for one and one for all, remember?" Sora smiled at Donald. "We're friends! I won't let others hurt you!"**_

Not when he did what he did…

" _ **Well, right now Donald, you and Goofy are on a quest." Aerith explained gently as she sipped her barley tea. "You don't have the time to get a job and get more money. So Donald's worried the money will run out before you complete your quest and that you won't complete your quest in time."**_

" _ **Oh…" Sora frowned and nodded, looking down slightly ashamed at the table.**_

 _ **She hadn't thought of that.**_

 _ **Even if she wasn't on her world anymore, she'd forgotten that money was still needed. And Donald and Goofy's king did seem rushed for time.**_

It still didn't give him the right to refuse to help her…

" _ **Oh yeah?!" Donald huffed. "I bet after you found your friends, you would have left us!"**_

 _ **Sora paused, stunned into silence.**_

 _ **She, she would've left them when she'd found Riku and Kairi but she figured their king would've been found by then too…But…If she had a choice to stay with Riku and Kairi or help find the king as well…**_

 _ **I would help! But Donald…With Donald around…Donald and his grouchy meanness!**_

" _ **You're right!" Sora shouted, glaring at Donald who seemed hurt for a second (his eyes widened and he froze). "I think I would just leave! You're such a bully that I would rather stay with my real friends!"**_

Even if she had been mean to him too…

 _ **Sora blinked a few times, wondering how she was even alive after falling from the gummi ship and then a brief flash came back to her mind of Donald holding out his hand as if to grab her and pull her back into the ship.**_

 _ **He must've cast a spell…**_

"I'm looking for my friends Riku and Kairi." Sora said, ignoring the squeezing feeling in her chest that screamed at her to add Donald's and Goofy's name. "Do you know where they are?"

"Look for Riku, friends?" the man asked, unaware of her heart's inner battle.

 _Kairi…Riku…What should I do?_

"Y-Yeah…" Sora was blinking hard to keep the tears away, frowning.

She would _not_ cry. She _didn't_ cry. No matter what!

But still…Why did she feel so sad?

Sora frowned but as she looked away from Tarzan and right into the eyes of Kairi, her body stiffened up in alarm. Kairi smiled at her, his blue eyes shining as he walked around in his usual fashion with his hands behind his back and a light skip to his feet. He didn't say anything but Sora could almost feel him comforting her, just by being there with her.

 _Am I hallucinating?_

"Kairi, friends?" the man asked, bring Sora back to the present.

"Uhh…right..." Sora mumbled and she felt a brief pang of loss when Kairi walked away and disappeared into thin air, as if he had never been there at all.

She missed him already. Just like she missed Riku. Just like she missed Goofy and Dona-…

Sora closed those thoughts away.

"Friends here." The man said, startling Sora so violently that as her head turned to stare at him she heard a crack.

"Really?!" Sora grinned, even as she rubbed the back of her neck to ease the pain.

As the man introduced himself as Tarzan (by gesturing to himself and saying 'Tarzan'), she decided to follow him to where Tarzan said Riku and Kairi were.

 _Guys…I'm coming! We're finally going to meet up again!_

And Sora continued to try and distract her mind from Donald and Goofy, though it didn't seem to be working as she still felt upset and about ready to cry.

* * *

 **Me:** I'm probably going to post again in a few hours so be on the lookout!


	18. Deep Jungle Part 2

**Me:** Okay! ...I've got nothing else on my mind right now so...

 **Sora:** Mearad doesn't own Kingdom Hearts or any characters of it!

* * *

 _ **Previously:**_

 _ **And Sora continued to try and distract her mind from Donald and Goofy, though it didn't seem to be working as she still felt upset and about ready to cry.**_

Some partly miserable time later…

Tarzan and Sora had travelled through a lot of trees and so far Sora had went without food for over a day. As such, she was immensely grateful when Tarzan handed her a bunch of bananas (and it tended to distract her from thinking about thoughts best left forgotten).

"Tarzan eat. Sora eat." He said, as he began peeling a banana.

Sora nodded and began eating as fast as she could, excited that she would finally be seeing Riku and Kairi. All thoughts of Donald was pushed out of her mind. If she hadn't of come here, she would never have found Riku or Kairi.

 _But I suppose once I find Riku and Kairi, I'll probably never talk with Donald or Goofy again…I did say I wouldn't come with them if I found my friends…_

Suddenly Sora wasn't so hungry anymore and seeing she was finished, Tarzen continued leading her through the humid morning weather up until they came across a huge tent. Tarzan seemed to move quicker to the tent and Sora stepped inside after him, surprise etched onto her face when she saw a woman dressed in normal clothes (ie. Not like Tarzan).

"Tarzan!" a woman came out, smiling brightly as she noticed Sora. "Oh, and who is this?"

 _Finally. She speaks proper English too!_

"I'm Sora-"

"OH!" the woman grinned. "You speak English…Obviously, you're not related to Tarzan then. Have you come to study the gorillas?"

 _No, I'm actually looking for my_ _ **real**_ _friends and leaving other fri-..other acquaintances…_

Before Sora could speak however, three people entered the tent. At once, relief surged through her and she couldn't control the joy in her voice as she ran to them.

"Donald! Goofy!" Sora exclaimed happily and Donald beamed at her.

But then it was as if Sora's guilt and stubbornness acted as a barrier again and she turned away, refusing to look at Donald as he too did the same thing.

"Aww…" Goofy sighed.

"So, what are you doing here?" the lady asked and Sora blinked, scratching the back of her head.

"Well, Tarzan said he saw my friends so I'm following him to see where they are." Sora explained. "But then he saw the tent and led me here. Have you seen some guys called Riku and Kairi?"

The woman frowned. "No unfortunately.."

"Then maybe they're with the gorillas."

Sora looked up, startled that she hadn't noticed the man wearing some weird clothes and having a weirder moustache as well as holding a gun.

"Mr Clayton!" the woman frowned. "You know as well as I do that the gorillas prefer to keep to themselves! Tarzan doesn't have to take us to them!"

Sora frowned and turned to Tarzan. "…Where are my friends, Riku and Kairi?"

Tarzan blinked before Mr. Clayton stepped in again, a smile on his face that looked much too cold to be friendly. "Well? Are you going to take us to the Gorillas or not? Gor-ri-las!"

"Hey!" Sora frowned at the man. "Don't be mean!"

"Tarzan go." Tarzan nodded, walking out the tent and Sora followed him, refusing to even look at Donald. "Jane stay."

The woman, presumably Jane, nodded though she shot a worried look in Mr. Clayton's direction and something told Sora Mr. Clayton wasn't exactly on friendly terms with them.

Then they were back to walking through the jungle again and Sora futilely tried to deny the happiness she felt that Donald and Goofy were coming with her.

"Hey Sora, look at this…" Goofy whispered, holding out his hand where a shiny green navigation gummi sat innocently in his hand. "We found this when we landed."

A bitter taste filled Sora's mouth.

So Donald had been wrong all along anyway. He'd blown up for nothing but his idiotic self!

"So we're going to stay and try to find the king." Donald announced, his voice terse.

"Fine." Sora said, just as tersely. "I'm staying to find Riku and Kairi anyway."

Tarzan looked back at them, before jumping up a vine. "Friends. Up."

Sora sweat dropped but decided to follow along.

Riku and Kairi weren't far away.

Later…

"Wheee!" Sora laughed as she swung from the vines. "This totally beats climbing trees back on the play island. Wheeeee!"

"Woo-ho!" Goofy laughed as he jumped on the vines and started swinging to the spot Tarzan was waiting for them.

"Ah phooey! Here goes nothing!" Donald said, taking a running leap and grabbing a vine, starting to laugh as he also got the hang of swinging.

The water lay calmly below them encase any of them fell but luckily, the onetime one did fall (yes, it was Sora), Tarzan had grabbed her foot to keep her from falling, somehow appearing near her within the span of two seconds.

The smell of fresh earth was less up here and the humidity cooler because of the shade of the trees and the colder air the higher they were. Tarzan seemed as wild as they come, climbing up plants that curled around the tall trees to swing off vines 30 meters above them. Tarzan had grown up with the gorillas since he was a baby which was why he had trouble speaking English and why he seemed so wild.

All in all, it was definitely the type of adventure that Sora found enjoyable.

Though of course, her excitement was slightly dampened by the fact Donald and she had a fight but they _weren't_ friends so why did she care anyway?

"Garwsh!" Goofy shouted suddenly as Donald finished landing on the area Tarzan, Sora and Goofy had been waiting on. "Look! It's the Gorillas!"

Sora looked up to see a huge gorilla with around a dozen others behind him. He seemed to be staring at Tarzan and Tarzan must've said something to his leader (Sora was sure that was what the big silverback gorilla was) but the leader (Kerchak or something-that was what Tarzan said anyway) just ignored them and walked away.

"So…What do we do now?" Goofy asked before frowning."Huh? Where'd Mr. Clayton go?"

Sora frowned, also looking around but not finding the man anywhere. "Maybe he got tired?"

But it seemed something had set Tarzan off because he was suddenly climbing the curling plants to get to higher ground as fast as he could, running across the treetops until he made it to a cliff where he climbed up the hole in the cliff once more before running out of sight.

"Tarzan!" Sora shouted and the three of them followed quickly, knowing that something bad was about to happen.

Sora could _feel_ it in her heart.

 _Sorry Riku, Kairi. You're going to have to wait for a bit!_

They climbed the through the whole Tarzan had disappeared through, slipping and sliding but finally managing to grab a hold of the curling plant and climb properly before they emerged in a clearing.

"Where'd Tarzan go?!" Donald shouted, looking left and right. "Ah Phooey! We lost him!"

Sora frowned, noticing in the distance the Tree House she had awoken in earlier that day.

Tarzan had come there earlier and saved her out of nowhere…But why would he have went there in the first place…? Maybe he was expecting something? Could it be he knew something bad was about to happen?

"Come on!" Sora shouted, already running towards the Tree House as her mind connected the dots (or at least guessed them). "I think he went this way! Something bad is gonna' happen if we don't hurry!"

"Right!" Donald nodded and the three of them ran as fast as they could up the hill, their sprinting relaxing for just a moment upon seeing Tarzan climbing up from the roots of the huge tree as if he had been kicked up.

However, their slow sprinting went back into full force upon seeing Mr. Clayton holding a gun pointing straight at a young gorilla.

"STOP!" Sora shouted, putting extra speed into her step as she ran in front of the young gorilla, summoning her keyblade and spinning it around so quickly it created a solid shield and deflected the bullet Mr. Clayton fired.

"I-Ah…Err…" Mr Clayton's eyes widened at seeing Sora suddenly in front of the gorilla, who quickly scampered away. "Um…"

"Save it!" Donald shouted, standing beside Sora with a scowl on his face.

"Yeah!" Sora shouted, her keyblade still in her hand as goofy and Tarzan stood near Mr. Clayton. "We saw what you did!"

 _I can't believe him! The gorillas did nothing wrong! I know Jane feared he was a hunter but to actually try and kill gorillas just for fun…They're innocent! Why would he attack them?!_

Later…

It seemed they were back to square one in going to find Riku and Kairi but Sora honestly didn't mind as right now, they were just letting a man leave who might try to hurt the gorillas again.

"Hmph! We can't allow this!" Donald squawked. "We just can't!"

 _Funny…I thought you said we weren't allowed to interfere…_

But Sora didn't say anything, just encase Donald decided to change his mind.

' _He probably would'_ Sora thought angrily. _'Just like he changed his mind in letting me find my friends. At least I'll have found them by the end of this exploration'._

"Here." Donald frowned, putting a sandwich in Sora's lap before looking away and talking. "Aerith made us some sandwiches. You're probably hungry."

Sora frowned. "Thanks…I guess…"

A flash of guilt went through her again.

He'd given her a sandwich and she'd been thinking meanly about him. What was the fight over again? It was so stupid now that she thought over it. They'd both gotten angry but she knew Donald was caring. He was just upset over the previous world and the few hours of sleep and the extra costs and time wasted.

And she was tired too, making it a perfect chance for tempers to rise.

"Look Donald, I'm-" Sora began but just as Donald turned to her, a gunshot rang out through the area and Tarzan looked up with Jane who had been talking to Goofy.

"What was that?!" Jane asked, worried. "Mr. Clayton might be attacking the gorillas!"

Sora was out the mostly bare tent quicker than she could think.

"Bamboo thicket." Tarzan said as Donald and Goofy ran out behind them, staff and shield at the ready.

"You guys ready for-?" Sora gasped as heartless suddenly appeared in the area.

 _Heartless?! What're they doing-OH._

Sora had completely forgotten the king may have given the coordinates of new worlds because they were in danger of being consumed by the heartless.

Sora thought it was weird how there hadn't been any heartless in the Deep Jungle yet.

"Tarzan!" Sora shouted and Tarzan, in the midst of stabbing a heartless, nodded to her. "Guys, let's do this!"

 _Riku, Kairi…Just wait a little longer! We've got some gorillas to save and a mean hunter to defeat!_

* * *

 **Me:** That's all for now! I'm off to bed before either of you come up with a better idea to get us killed or worse, expelled!

 **Sora:**...Please don't use quotes from other characters from books.


	19. Kiss n' Make Up

**Me:** I was wondering, is anybody wanting Sora to have a love interest in Kingdom Hearts II and if so, who?

 **Sora:** psst! You forgot about the question and answer thing!

 **Me:** Oh... Shiranai Atsune: Sora, Donald and Goofy will do a few trinities over the course of the story though not in this you guess when I plan for them to be used? (you can even give suggestions if you like)

* * *

The sun was setting, casting shadows over them that made it hard for them to fight the heartless. Even worse, the heartless were tricky this time, one type of yellow monkey throwing bananas all over the ground so everyone kept falling because they couldn't see at night.

 _Be smart during battles! Leon said to be smart! But what should I do?!_

Suddenly, Goofy crashed into her and she fell backwards, knocking into a heartless who in turn slipped on a stray banana that had been thrown too far away from Sora and Goofy.

 _Of course!_

Sora beamed as she quickly got up and helped Goofy, who was rubbing his head. "Watch where you step and try and get the heartless to come to you!"

"WHAT?!" Donald shouted as he cast another thunder. "HAVE YOU GONE STUPID, SORA?!"

"No!" Sora shouted, ducking as one of the monkey heartless scratched at her. "Hiiiya!"

They were still outside the tent, protecting it and Jane from the heartless. But if they wanted to save the gorillas from Mr. Clayton (they were _sure_ he was attacking them), they had to move fast.

Slashing upwards, the heartless disappeared with the heart disappearing into the air. "If you stay in one position, you _can't_ trip over a banana peel! And with the heartless moving towards us, _they'll_ be the ones to trip!"

"Gocha!" Goofy smiled, standing carefully as the heartless got closer to him.

"Let's do this!" Sora shouted, smiling at Tarzan who was able to stand still and still attack the heartless because he had a long range weapon.

Long range…

Sora nearly hit herself for just standing there and waiting for the heartless to attack her.

Did she, or did she not have a keyblade that could be continuously summoned to her hand no matter where she threw it?

Sora grinned.

 _It's time to practice my aim!_

Though missing quite a few times, Sora managed to attack quite a few heartless by throwing her keyblade at them. The only heartless seemed to be all monkey heartless and Sora felt a brief flash of worry that it might be the gorillas who were getting attacked and losing their hearts.

 _No! I can't worry about that now! I have to go before Clayton hurts them!_

It was dark and chilly by the time they finished fighting the heartless but Tarzan seemed to travel through the jungle with ease, even then. They had just reached the bamboo thicket when something darted out at Tarzan, who seemed too occupied with finding his family to see the sabor from earlier lunging at him.

"Tarzan!" Sora shouted, darting forward and slashing with her keyblade.

She landed a few feet passed the sabor, who had froze as she attacked it. It looked upwards, wobbling slightly before landing to the ground with a solid thump.

"Wow!" Goofy said. "You're getting better at this keyblade stuff, Sora!"

Sora grinned, scratching the back of her head. "Hehe…I am, aren't I?"

 _A giant shadow, a spinning armoured heartless, a huge three headed dog…And now a sabor…I'm definitely getting stronger! I bet I'm even strong enough to defeat Riku!_

"Sora take." Tarzan nodded to her, going to the sabor and picking up a tooth that had fallen on the ground from the sabor's mouth. "Take."

Sora sweat dropped but pocketed the tooth, wondering if Kairi would be willing to make a necklace out of it when Sora found him later.

 _Probably. He likes making necklaces, especially with seashells. I'm sure he wouldn't mind making this one for me…_

"Wait! Now's not the time!" Sora groaned, inwardly bashing her brain.

 _How the hell am I so forgetful?!_

They ran further passed the thicket, coming to the cliff side and finding what they were looking for. The heartless had surrounded the gorillas and every few seconds a few more gorillas ran into the clearing, having been chased there by the heartless.

"It's a trap!" Sora gasped. "Something's coordinating them again!"

And then they saw Clayton jump down from a higher part of the cliff, aiming his gun at Kerchak, with the rest of the herd behind him.

'Stop!" Sora shouted in alarm and Clayton looked at the four of them with a blank look on his face. "…Mr Clayton?"

Sora shivered suddenly, as if she knew something was wrong with him.

"Not Clayton!" Tarzan shouted suddenly in warming, eyes alarmed. "#%^ ! Not Clayton!"

Suddenly the heartless attacked and Sora gasped, summoning her keyblade. Dodging the first attack, Sora yelped as she was thrown back into the cliff wall as a heartless attacked her from the shadows.

 _It's too dark…!_

"Donald, we need light!" Sora shouted and a second later flames were dancing across the area, illuminating the monkey heartless that were creepily bouncing around the area as if they had a sugar rush from too many bananas.

' _Or hearts'_ Sora thought grimly.

But then she was attacking, knowing how much energy it costed Donald to maintain magic for so long.

It was over quickly but it still was too much for Donald, who collapsed as soon as the heartless were destroyed.

"Where's Clayton?!" Sora shouted, looking around at the now dark space again but finding no sign of him.

 _Or the gorillas._

"Where-?" Sora began but Tarzan smiled, looking passed the cliff.

"Safe." He said simply, just as Clayton appeared, sitting on thin air.

"What…?" Sora mumbled, blinking hard to see if maybe the dark was making her see things.

But nope, he really was riding on thin air.

A weird animal screech was heard as Tarzan ran forward to tackle Clayton.

He was slammed back into the wall.

"Tarzan!" Sora shouted, helping him up and giving him a potion. "Goofy, give Donald an ether! Something's very wrong here…!"

"Mr Clayton, why are ya' doing this?!" Goofy said quickly, trying to buy them time.

However, before Clayton could answer, Tarzan answered, scowl on his face as he stared warily at the hunter in question. "Not Clayton

Clayton aimed his gun at them, still silent. Donald had stirred thanks to the ether and the four of them stood up, ready to attack as a group.

"Sora!" Donald shouted as Sora tensed, ready to attack. "…Be careful."

"I-…You too…" Sora swallowed hard, wanting so much more to say but knowing she'd have to wait until she'd finished taking care of Mr Clayton.

 _I guess this just means I'll have to finish this quickly!_

Sora trained her eyes back on Clayton who was in the air and the mysterious creature who was invisible.

 _Right now I have to focus!_

As the invisible creature ran forward (Sora was only able to see because Clayton moved forward too), Sora smashed her keyblade downwards in the hope to hit something.

Instead, she was knocked backwards and sent flying from the invisible force.

 _Must've attacked me from the side…_

"Sora!" Goofy shouted, as he came next to her, shield raised encase the creature attacked them again.

"Goofy, can you attack the invisible creature with your shield?" Sora asked, as she got up and accepted a potion from him. "I'll go after Clayton!"

Donald brought up flames again, illuminating the area and allowing Sora to dodge the bullets Clayton was speeding her way. Sora quickly dodged rolled again as Donald's flames set the invisible creature's tail on fire and caused it to swing its tail towards Sora in the hopes to attack her.

Suddenly, the creature was visible, with a heartless emblem emblazed on its chest. It looked like a chameleon, except it was huge and deadly and had the same glowing yellow eyes that every heartless seemed to have.

Sora ran forward again, trying to get closer to Clayton but failing as the chameleon heartless swung around in a circle, trying to put out the fire that was slowly spreading across its whole body.

 _I need to hit Clayton! But I have to get somewhere high to get to him…._

Sora looked up at the ledge Clayton had jumped down before, making a split second decision.

Taking a running leap, Sora launched herself off the ground and started running up the cliff wall, nearly slipping but just managing to make in onto the ledge.

 _I just ran three metres vertically up a cliff and defied gravity! Ha! I bet my physics teacher would be aghast!_

Clayton was busy aiming at Goofy, who kept moving around and staying away from the invisible creature's attacks while simultaneously defending Donald who seemed to be struggling to maintain the flames to see. Tarzan, on the other hand, was now defending his family from the heartless that had appeared where Tarzan had tried to keep them from getting harmed.

Sora moved near the edge of the ledge, some of the ledge crumbling a little as she looked down at the chameleon heartless that had finally gotten the flames out and was back to being invisible.

She couldn't waste anymore time. If she stopped Clayton who was controlling the heartless (it was the only explanation because the one he was on wasn't trying to take his heart), they would scatter because nobody would be giving them orders and they're too stupid to think plans. The gorillas would be safe.

 _Here goes!_

With a jolt, Sora launched herself off the ledge, keyblade out. In an instant, she'd landed on the creature and swung her keyblade into Clayton, knocking him over and making him fall off the creature with a pained yell.

The creature screeched angrily and Sora desperately clung on as it jumped on a wall and started walking vertically in a circle to try and shake her off. Sora had no idea what had happened to Clayton as she was too occupied trying not to fall of the heartless that would no doubt strike for the kill the moment she did.

"Sora!" Donald shouted, and Sora gasped as she began to slip off the chameleon.

 _I have to hold on! What should I do?!_

In a last resort effort to stay on, she dug her keyblade into the chameleon's back and it secured her hold, acting like an anchor for her to hold on to.

For the moment.

The chameleon heartless shrieked as the keyblade sunk into its skin and suddenly it was visible again, though this time Sora knew it was because it was losing strength and didn't have enough to maintain his hiding form. But still Sora held on, no having thought of any plan other than to _stay on_.

It kept shrieking and Sora gripped her keyblade tighter as she was nearly flung off it again. She closed her eyes, just before she was thrown off as the heartless jumped upside down in a last resort effort to get her and her keyblade off of it.

"NO!" Donald shouted and Sora's hand shot out, gripping the keyblade that was still in the chameleon's back.

But because she did this, it resulted in the keyblade twisting into the chameleon, probably causing a lot of damage judging by its reaction. The chameleon heartless gave a feeble whine before it fell towards the ground, with Sora falling just underneath it.

"MAGNET!" Donald's voice rang out in the darkness and suddenly the defeated heartless was no longer falling over her, instead spinning in a circle of light that seemed to be keeping it magnetised to it.

She fell to the ground with a large thump and stars covered her eyes as she groaned and darkness faded in and out of focus.

The next moment she was getting up with a slight headache but otherwise fine thanks to the high-potion Goofy had given her.

"Gwarsh Sora! I knew ya' had it in ya'!" Goofy laughed as he helped her up. "You were amazing!"

Sora nodded, squinting through the darkness and running towards Donald and Tarzan and ignoring Clayton who seemed to be sitting on the ground, blank faced again.

"Donald, are you okay?!" Sora asked and Donald nodded, eyes drooping shut a little.

"Just…Tired…" Donald yawned. "Two ethers kinda' do that to ya…"

"Rest then!" Sora said quickly, frowning. "The battle's over!"

Donald nodded, eyes closing shut as he spoke. "Sora…I'm sorry for what I said earlier. I was being mean…"

"I…I'm sorry too…" Sora whispered, her voice tight. "I…I didn't mean what I said. No matter what, you guys are my friends and I'll definitely help you guys find your king! I promise!"

Goofy laughed joyously, pulling them all into a hug. "All for one and one for all! Hyuk!"

"Great…" Donald twitched. "Now get off my foot Goofy so I can get some rest!"

"Garwsh! Sorry!" Goofy said bashfully but he had a wide smile on his face as he turned to Sora.

"I…I'm sorry Goofy." Sora frowned. "I ignored you too…Can…Can you forgive me?!"

"Of course!" Goofy smiled. "We're all friends! Don't forget that!"

"Tarzan. Sora. Friends." Tarzan nodded to her and Sora smiled, a few tears escaping her eyes and she sniffed a bit.

"Thanks…" she smiled before laughing a bit. "But if anyone asks, I wasn't crying! I _don't_ cry!"

Goofy laughed even as Tarzan just nodded seriously as if it was a solemn promise he would never break.

"Damn you!" Clayton shouted suddenly and the three of them with the sleeping Donald looked up.

Clayton was aiming his gun-right at Tarzan. "I'll kill you for what you've done! All of you!"

However, before he could shoot, a rock was thrown which knocked the gun right out of his hand.

It was the young gorilla Sora had protected at the tree house.

Clayton gritted his teeth as Tarzan and Sora walked towards him with Goofy staying near Donald to protect him just encase.

"Give it up Clayton." Sora folded her arms. "You've lost."

Clayton sneered.

And then he ran.

Right towards the young gorilla.

"NO!" Tarzan shouted as Clayton and the young gorilla toppled over the cliff and down into the roaring river below.

Tarzan looked down in despair at the river as Sora and Goofy ran towards the cliff edge.

"We'll never make it in time!" Sora shouted desperately before she noticed a few vines in the light of the moonlight.

* * *

 **Me:** So we're getting different endings to boss fights more and more now... What's going to happen next?


	20. River Ride

**Me:** Okay! First up:

 **Sora:** To **Mana**...

 **Me:** I added a certain scene at the end and I just want to say thanks for the idea! Also, in regards to Halloween Town... Heheh... There will be a certain character Sora (extremely) finds shiver-inducing but I'm keeping my mouth shut...

* * *

"Hurry!" Sora shouted as she jumped to the next vine.

The young gorilla and Clayton were struggling to stay above water with the rapid tides trying to draw them down into the watery depths. Sora could barely see which meant it was even more dangerous. She was relying solely on Tarzan's good night vision to see where the gorilla and Clayton were.

Huffing a bit, Sora jumped down further and landed on a tree trunk wedged into the side of the cliff. Goofy followed suit and Tarzan hung from a vine nearby, pointing behind them to where the gorilla and Clayton were.

Good.

They still had some time before Tarzan and the young gorilla got to where they were standing.

And then the log fell.

"WHHHAAAAA!" Sora and Goofy shouted as the log hit the water and nearly threw them off as it broke in half.

 _What…? We're staying afloat?_

Goofy had covered his eyes as they'd hit the water but Sora quickly nudged him. "The log's acting as a boat! Let's try to get the gorilla and Clayton on and grab the cliff edge to prevent us going any further! Tarzan can help from there!"

"Right!" Goofy nodded, turning back to shout to the gorilla that could just be seen under the moonlight. "Over here!"

Sora grimaced as she plunged her hand into the icy waters, grabbing some of the wooden log that had broken off and trying to use it as a paddle to steer them towards the edge of the cliff.

 _Come on! Come on! Move! Move!_

And then the gorilla was on, shivering as Goofy started to call out to Clayton as well.

They were getting closer to the edge of the cliff now and Sora could see the waterfall coming closer.

They were running out of time.

And then Tarzan was swinging between the cliffs, tying the vines together and attaching a third one for them to climb on. And then a fourth. And another. And another!

 _He wants us to climb up!_

"Goofy, Tarzan's gorilla friend!" Sora shouted, ignoring the distant thought in the back of her head that she was being too tactless again by calling the gorilla 'Tarzan's gorilla friend'. "See those vines?! We're each going to grab one!"

"Right!" Goofy agreed and the gorilla nodded in understanding, even as the water sprayed them and nearly caused them to topple out into the water.

"Where's Clayton?!" Sora asked just as she saw him around two metres away, desperately trying to swim towards them. "Here! Take my hand!"

But it seemed Clayton was just intend on killing them. A swimming heartless appeared and carried him on its back, coming towards them at an alarming rate that would get to them before they got to the vines and safety.

Sora's heart beat erratically as her hair stuck to her face and more river water sprayed her while the night chill finally settled into her skin.

She only had one chance.

She'd missed quite a few times in her previous attempts.

But she'd also accurately aimed quite a few times too.

She launched her keyblade at the heartless which had lunged at them to gobble them up.

It was thrown back a meter and Clayton was launched into the air…Before he fell right into the heartless' open mouth that was still waiting to gobble something up.

It closed its mouth and Clayton from view.

Sora looked down stunned.

The heartless had taken Clayton and his heart without any remorse.

Of course she knew the heartless didn't care but Clayton had been _ordering_ the heartless. Working with them. And they had consumed him and his heart as soon as he let his guard down.

 _He was consumed by the darkness…_

And then the vines were upon them and Sora, Goofy and the gorilla grabbed on, starting to climb as the log fell down the waterhole.

She sighed as they reached Tarzan. "Clayton's gone. His heart was consumed by the heartless he controlled."

Tarzan nodded, as if he'd already known all along and Sora realised with a jolt, he probably did.

 _Tarzan did seem to think Clayton wasn't really Clayton back at the cliff top….So Clayton had already lost his heart?_

Sora continued climbing with Goofy, Tarzan and the gorilla.

Later…

 _Man, I haven't slept in a bed for two days…_

Trust Sora to think that the moment they get back to the gorilla herd waiting back at the cliff top. Donald was there too, looking nervous at being near them but having woken up only a minute ago so didn't have much time to panic about his friends pulling a disappearing act.

Tarzan nodded to Kerchak as the young gorilla joined its herd and Kerchak nodded back, walking towards Sora who looked up nervously. Kerchak put his hand on Sora….and threw her into the air, resulting in her landing painfully on the ground behind the cliff wall where another waterfall was.

She landed with a painful 'omph'.

Donald and Goofy met the same fate, though were unluckily enough to land on each other just as Sora rolled out of the way. Tarzan climbed the wall and joined them a moment later, taking one last look at his family before leading the way.

And then Sora remembered where Tarzan was leading them.

 _I can't believe so much has happened…All I wanted was for Tarzan to lead me to Riku and Kairi yet we managed to stop a mad hunter, save a whole gorilla herd and a single gorilla from falling down a waterfall and drowning…_

"Tarzan home." Tarzan said, turning back to them as Jane waved to them and caught up, the young gorilla holding her hand.

 _Tarzan must've asked the young gorilla to bring Jane…_

Still, even though the sun was rising and she was dead tired, the prospect of finally being reunited with Riku and Kairi kept her going and she followed Tarzan passed the beautiful waterfall and into the cave that went on for at least ten minutes.

"What's that?!" Donald squawked out as he narrowed his eyes and looked in the distance.

There was a faint blue glow and the group of six made their way towards the glow-this obviously being Tarzan's destination.

They entered the room to find beautiful glowing butterflies being the cause of the blue glow.

Riku and Kairi were nowhere in sight and Sora frowned, turning to Tarzan with a sinking feeling in her chest.

"Tarzan home." Tarzan nodded and Sora swallowed heavily.

"What about my friends? Where are they?" Sora asked, an almost desperate quality in her voice.

"#%^ !" Tarzan nodded and everyone tried to understand what he meant as the sound of waterfalls reached their ears.

"We can hear the waterfalls all the way here…" Jane muttered. "Tarzan's family must be here…We must be in the heart of their home…"

"#%^ !" Tarzan nodded and Jane clicked.

"Oh! I get it! #%^ ! means heart!" Jane smiled and Tarzan nodded. "Friends in your hearts!"

"Heart." Tarzan said simply.

Sora deflated a little, her excitement disappearing as depression took over.

"Sora…"

Sora looked up at the sound of Donald's and Goofy's voice.

She burst out laughing as she saw the funny faces they pulled.

"Heh." Donald grinned. "There's as many worlds as there are stars. You can't go getting sad just because you didn't find them this time!"

"Donald's right!" Goofy nodded happily. "Besides, I'm sure the king will know where to look and is helping right now!"

"Friends, same heart." Tarzan said, looking at Sora and then to Donald and Goofy. "Clayton, lose heart. No heart, no see friends. No heart, no friends."

… _He's right. We are all connected by our hearts. While I can't find Riku and Kairi right now, I_ _ **will**_ _find them. I know I will…They aren't that far away from me, I just know it…_

"Hehe." Sora grinned a little. "Thanks everyone. How about we go home now?"

"Right!" Donald cheered. "It's time for some good sleep!"

"Tarzan. Sora. Friends." Tarzan said in his broken English, handing her two small vines twisted together.

Suddenly Sora's keyblade appeared in her hand and Tarzan pointed to the end where a keychain could be attached.

At the top of the gift Tarzan made was a loop where she could hook it to her keyblade.

Looking as bewildered as Donald, Goofy and Jane, she put it on her keyblade only to gasp as her keyblade changed shape into a dark green with swirls all over it to make it look forest-like.

"How did you…?!" Sora gasped but Tarzan only nodded.

"Tarzan see Sora's heart. See good heart." Tarzan nodded. "Tarzan's gift help Sora's heart."

And then the butterflies scattered, fluttering around the group. But Sora wasn't watching this.

She was too busy staring at the keyhole in the tree.

Summoning her keyblade, she aimed at the keyhole and a beam shot out, locking the heart of Tarzan's and Jane's world.

"What was that?" Jane asked curiously.

"Was that? Was that?" Tarzan repeated, getting everyone to laugh at Tarzan's almost puzzled expression.

"So you think you'll be able to learn English?" Sora asked Tazan only for Tarzan to smile and come towards her.

"Sora learn. Sora learn." Tarzan said, turning to Jane. "Jane learn. Sora learn. Tarzan know."

"Gawrsh. I think he wants ya' to learn gorilla!" Goofy laughed as Targan began making noises along with the young gorilla.

"Hey!" Donald interrupted as the young gorilla started pulling Sora's cheeks to help her pronounce the right sounds. "We can't learn a language! We've got to go, Sora!"

"We can manage things here." Jane smiled as she stood beside Tarzan.

"Right, right." Sora laughed. "I'll never forget you both!"

The young gorilla threw a banana at her.

"Heheh." Sora laughed at the gorilla who folded her arms (for being excluded at first). "And you too."

"Goodbye! Have a safe trip!" Jane smiled.

"We will! Ahyuk!" Goofy waved as Donald led the way out the cave.

"….So where is the gummi ship anyway?"

* * *

 **Me:** What do you think about Clayton's ending?

 **Sora:** Well, I personally found it sad-Hey, stop eating all my fruit!

*the young gorilla scampers off with all the fresh fruit*

 **Sora:**...I'll just ask Maleficent to get some.

 **Maleficent:** Just because we're on break now doesn't mean you can talk to me, you fool. Besides, I'd never do something for a lowly imbecile like you.

 **Me:**...and that is why Sora is so eager to kick your booty, Maleficent.


	21. Kairi

**Me:** So, I'm actually thinking on **Mana's** idea of having King Triton explain to Sora how he knows about the keyblade and other worlds... Of course I have no idea what to say though. Any ideas?

 **Sora:** To **Shiranai Atsune**... Eventually we found the gummi ship because of a certain jungle man's help... No thanks to Donald or Goofy for forgetting...

 **Donald:** Hey! Every part of the jungle looks the same! How were we meant to remember where it crashed?!

 **Goofy:** Gawrsh fellas... don't ya' think we should stop talking now?

* * *

Part of the gummi ship was dinted.

Chip had given up on being angry about the ship, more relieved that Sora was okay than that the ship was. Pluto had picked up his latest batch of puppies from the Deep Jungle (how did he even find the puppies anyway?) and so, after borrowing a crate from the Tree House, the puppies wee all placed inside so they didn't do any more damage to the ship.

"Alright!" Donald beamed, in a much happier mood (though still very tired). "Let's hurry up and go to Traverse Town to get some sleep and the navigation piece installed!"

"And some food!" Sora added, stomach rumbling. "I haven't eaten for _ages_."

"And get the ship repaired." Jiminy added. "I must say, what you did today was very clever Sora."

Sora grinned. "I'm learning."

Sometime later…

"So…Can I drive the ship?"

"No!"

"Awwww! Come on!"

"You made us crash into Tarzan's world!"

"That was an accident!"

"You nearly crashed us into a meteor for those few seconds I went to go to the toilet!"

"…that was an accident too?"

"No Sora!"

Traverse Town:

"Hey! Where's Leon?!" Sora asked excitedly as she bounced towards Cloud who was milling about in the first district. "We defeated this awesome heartless and saved a gorilla and EVERYTHING!"

 _Wait till Leon hears this! And we even locked another keyhole! And my keyblade changed shape thanks to the keychain Tarzan gave me! I had no idea it could even change shape! There's so much to say! I can't even imagine having to tell Riku and Kairi all this!_

"He's in the waterway." Cloud interrupted her thoughts, looking at her. "You know your way?"

"Nope!" Sora beamed before skipping on ahead. "I'll find it though!"

She ran passed him and towards Cid's shop , just as Donald and Goofy caught on.

"Damn it, Sora!" Donald hollered, though his face was grinning. "Wait for me! I know the way!"

"Hey fellas! Don't leave me behind!" Goofy laughed, running to catch up to them.

Getting Cid to install the new gummi navigation piece cost them nothing this time, as well as repairing the ship.

"Aerith asked me to, kid, cause' of ya' little money problem" Cid grinned. "sides', I did promise I'd help ya' out if ya' needed it."

Sora, Donald and Goofy beamed at each other.

"…Of course, ya'll do me a favour and do a delivery job" Cid began and Sora sighed.

"Awwww! I was just about to…ah….Actually, that's fine! Of course I'll help!" Sora changed her mind upon seeing Cid's expression (a mix between fury and murderous).

"Great." Cid grinned and calmed back down, his toothpick still in his mouth as he spoke (did he ever change it or was it always the same one?). "Take this to the old house on the outskirts of the third district! Got it?"

"Yep!" Sora grinned, grabbing the book. "But what is it? An exchange diary or something?"

Sora ducked as Cid threw a coin at her, grinning all the way as he hollered "Hell no!"

Shaking her head , Sora remembered Selphie from Destiny Islands trying to rope Sora into doing an exchange diary when they were younger. Of course Sora didn't want to and refused to do it but still the book kinda' triggered the memories.

 _Riku was laughing his head off when I told him…Kairi seemed more inclined to actually do that…something about understanding each other better…Hmm…Now that I think about it, it would've probably been interesting to see Riku's thoughts…I could've teased him about something…But then again, he could've done the same… I wonder what Kairi thought of us...?_

"You okay, Sora?" Donald asked as they walked into the second district.

"Yeah. Just thinking on the past." Sora smiled. "Kairi was always the soft one while Riku and I were always competitive…"

"Hehe" Donald laughed, covering his mouth. "So which one do you-"

"Shut up!" Sora hissed, face crimson as Goofy laughed along with Donald. "Nooo…I'll never be able to look them in the face properly after this…I can't believe you even made me think of which one I might like as a boyfriend! Geez, there's more to a friendship between a guy and a girl that that! Especially my friendship with Riku and Kairi!"

Donald and Goofy laughed again, smiles on their faces.

"We know!" Goofy smiled. "It's just fun to see you flustered!"

"Meanies!" Sora poked her tongue out.

"Hmph!" Donald smiled proudly. "If you need any advice, I'm currently dating someone-she's back at Disney Castle!"

Sora pretended to look horrified. "Dating you?! She must be blind!"

Goofy laughed, covering his mouth as Donald 'hmphed' again.

Donald lead them straight to Leon and Sora was quick to explain how they had locked another keyhole.

"While nearly dying in the process…" Donald muttered at the end.

"You'll need to keep improving." Leon nodded, wiping his face with a towel (he had been training). "The heartless are only going to get stronger."

"Right!" Sora grinned.

 _Defeating Riku is just a bonus to getting stronger as well!_

"Here." Leon said, holding out his hand and dropping a brown stone into Sora's hand. "I've been holding it for good luck but you'll need it more. Don't do anything stupid."

Sora nodded, grinning widely as she pocketed the earth stone. "Don't worry! I won't-"

"You're forgetting you've gotten us to fight a three headed dog and nearly die, you got us sentenced to death once AND you swung from vines between deadly cliffs and nearly drowned." Donald pointed out and Sora grinned bashfully.

"Like I said." Leon frowned. "You will need it more than I will. Just be careful out there. You'll come across more dangers on your journey, no doubt."

"Right." Sora smiled, waving as Donald dragged her away. "Thanks so much Leon!"

Leon only shook his head in bemusement as he grabbed his gunblade and began to pack up.

With Sora, Donald and Goofy…

They had finally reached the third district a few minutes later and it seemed quiet.

Too quiet.

There was no signs of heartless (which was kinda' weird) and Sora shot a wary look to Donald and Goofy, who seemed to have dropped the good natured atmosphere from earlier. All three of them had their weapons out as they walked through the square, sensing something wasn't right.

And then the heartless attacked.

Sora's keyblade was out as she weaved through the heartless coming at them. She knew she had improved but she also knew she had a long way before she could truly fight the heartless without worrying.

Donald cast thunder, destroying the heartless standing in Sora's way and as Goofy charged the last one and destroyed it, the three of them regrouped in the middle of the square.

"That was weird…" Sora muttered. "That looked like a well planned ambush…"

"Didn't we defeat the boss heartless that was ordering them around?" Donald squawked. "We should be careful!"

"Gawrsh, maybe we should go tell the gang?" Goofy suggested and Sora nodded.

"Yeah, we'll deliver Cid's book quickly and then see him!" Sora nodded.

Finding the shop (Cid described it as having a fire drawing on it), they entered the building to find a lake of water surrounding a house in the middle. Stepping stones provided the way to the house but Sora still sweat dropped, wondering _why_ somebody would choose to live here.

"Well, let's go!" Goofy smiled, jumping to the first stepping stone…That moved and caused him to fall into the water.

"Goofy, are you okay?" Sora asked as she helped him out the water while Donald inspected the stepping stones.

"Hmm…" Donald frowned. "They don't seem dangerous but maybe we should-"

Sora was already jumping across, the prospect of a challenge being too much to resist.

"Hey, this is like the vine jumping!" Sora grinned. "Just jump where you know you'll end up upon landing!"

With that tip in mind, the three of them were jumping from moving stone to moving stone until they reached the house on the mini island.

"Helloooooooooo?!" Sora shouted as they entered the house. "We've got a deliveryyyyyyyyyyy!"

But the house was completely deserted.

There was no signs of habitation and no furniture either. It was dark and damp and seemed to-

"Kind of reminds you of the secret place, doesn't it?"

Sora's head snapped left as she heard the voice. The very _familiar_ voice.

"Kairi…?" Sora whispered as she saw Kairi walking around and viewing the room with interest.

He smiled at her and a tide of relief shot through Sora.

He was okay…!

"Remember?" Kairi grinned. "We used to scribble on the walls. Well, you and I did. Riku was too 'cool' to draw on the walls but we drew for him anyway. I still remember his face when we told him the kitten represented his personality..."

Sora grinned, relaxing as she felt herself fold back into the familiar friendship that she had with Kairi. This was Kairi all right. They always were able to talk about anything that bothered them or laugh over their silliness in the past-mainly Riku but who was listening?

"Sora?"

Sora jumped and turned to Donald, almost forgetting he was there. He was staring at her in confusion and turning back to Kairi, Sora was just about to introduce him to Donald and Goofy but Kairi was gone.

"Kairi…?" Sora frowned, looking around but there was no trace of him.

 _Where…? Where'd Kairi go?_

"So, you've arrived then." A aged old man said, entering from the hole in the side of the house (the front door was boarded up).

Sora blinked, turning to stare at the old man while her thoughts still went to Kairi.

 _He musta' left for some reason…Or maybe he wasn't there at all…Man, this is confusing…It's just like back on the island when he just disappeared in front of me…Maybe he's playing some type of game…But that doesn't seem like him…Hmm…Maybe I'm just hallucinating and he's still waiting on a world for me to find him…? But…I still feel much happier…It's like…Just from seeing him, I_ _ **know**_ _he's okay…_

"I am Merlin." The old man introduced himself as he opened his bag and the furniture literally started to fly out of his bag.

With that last thought on Kairi, Sora tuned back to the Merlin character, who was now demonstrating amazing feats Sora had never thought would ever happen.

He was cleaning and arranging a room in the span of two minutes.

Merlin smiled as he saw Sora's expression. "Surprised, keyblade wielder?"

Sora startled with Donald and Goofy as Merlin nodded.

"Yes, your king has told me a lot about you." Merlin said as a tea pot poured some tea in four cups and they headed to him, Sora, Donald and Goofy. "Please, drink up. We have much to talk about."

Sora nodded, drinking her tea slowly (there was no sugar) until the sugar and spoon literally floated over to her and put some in her cup. Her mouth must've been hanging open because Merlin smiled again.

"As you can see, I am a magician of sorts." Merlin said, taking another sip of his tea as Donald and Goofy nodded, excitement within them at the fact Merlin had spoken to the king. "Your king requested I give you some assistance."

"Do you happen to know where the king is?!" Donald asked, hope in his voice and Merlin frowned, shaking his head.

"Unfortunately, we parted ways a while ago." Merlin explained. "However, I do know the purpose of his travels."

"Really?" Donald beamed and Sora figured if they knew what the king was doing, they'd be able to meet him wherever he was going next.

Sora had figured he was just trying to protect the worlds that were in danger.

"There spreads as we speak a discord around the worlds." Merlin said gravely. "He seeks a means by which to prevent the darkness enveloping all."

'So…the heartless are to blame?" Sora frowned. "They're causing the destruction of the worlds after all."

"The heartless are to blame, yes." Merlin nodded, finishing his tea and staring straight at Sora. "However, the king believes somebody is behind it. Somebody is controlling the heartless and causing the destruction of worlds. For what reason, we do not know. However, he is trying to prevent the darkness that is threatening to consume us all…"

 _So the king is searching for Ansem's reports about the heartless so he can figure out how to stop them?_

Sora was happy to note she didn't feel scared to be helping Donald and Goofy and their king fight off this threat.

 _Donald, Goofy, Leon and the gang, Ace, Tarzan and Jane and the gorilla who I still don't know the name of, Jiminy, Chip and Dale, Pluto and the Dalmatian family…Riku and Kairi…They're all my friends! And I WILL protect them!_

"Hmm? What's that you've got there?" Merlin asked as Sora pulled out the earth stone to look at it.

"It's a good luck item Leon gave me!" Sora beamed. "I figured if we're gonna' stop the heartless, it would be nice to have some luck!"

"Yeah but shouldn't we not rely on luck but our own strength?" Goofy asked and Sora frowned.

"I…I hadn't thought of that…But you're right…" Sora said, before pocketing the earth stone anyway. "Oh well, it's still a gift and what harm is a little luck on top of our own strength?"

"Well, in any case, not casting magic is a waste of the full capacity of your weapon." Merlin smiled. "I'll be helping you practice your magic."

"It's a lost cause." Donald said instantly, even as Sora scowled at him. "What? It's true!"

"Well, we'll see what we can do to fix that."

* * *

 **Me:** That's it for now! Sora's got a certain gem now and is going to learn some magic (...hopefully).

 **Sora:** Don't forget to review about your thoughts on King Triton and the how he knows about the keyblade and other worlds!


	22. Riku

**Me:** Okay! Thank you all! I have an idea for King Triton!

 **Sora:** You took your time for this chapter, huh?

 **Me:** Apparently I couldn't log into my account because there was no servers available... Sorry for the delay, everyone.

* * *

An hour later of training…

"Shut up Sora." Donald huffed, even though Sora hadn't said anything but continued to grin wider.

"Come on! Admit it!" Sora laughed. "I'm awesome! I managed to cast both fire and blizzard within the hour!"

"Yeah but Merlin said that would be about all you'll be able to cast!" Donald huffed. "I admit…It was pretty amazing you managed to learn them _at all_ but at least now you'll be able to cast some defensive magic."

"Hyuk!" Goofy smiled. "I can't cast that well either! Only aero, which puts a light wind shield around me to prevent me from getting hurt too much!"

Sora grinned. "Well, you are a knight of defence and protection after all!"

Donald walked ahead of them through the third district square as Sora and Goofy conversed again. "But I still can't believe how much our tasks keep piling up!"

Sora smiled as she put her hands behind her head. "But we'll do them one at a time. And if the Cheshire Cat is to believed, Ace should be with or near your king so he won't be that hard to find. As for Kairi, I just _know_ he's safe. All who's left is-"

A soldier heartless suddenly launched itself at Sora's back, sending her toppling to the ground with a gasp. But before it could do anymore than raise its hand to strike her, it was destroyed.

"Come on Sora! I thought you were better than that!"

Sora's eyes widened and she spun around, nearly tripping over her feet in her rush to see if it was really Riku.

He stood, in all his normal self, the same way she remembered him. The same clothes, the same smirking face but a different weapon. Where she remembered he used to hold the wooden swords like she did back on the island, it seemed when Destiny Islands was destroyed, he had also got himself a real weapon.

 _Am I hallucinating again…?_

Sora was surprised as her feet started running and she launched herself at Riku, grinning as she hugged him tightly.

"Riku! Riku…!" Sora laughed out happily as he felt solid in her embrace.

He was real.

"Hey…!" Riku tried to pry her off and Sora grinned, scratching her nose. "What was that all about? I've been looking for you everywhere but I didn't think you'd missed me that much."

Sora smiled. "I've been looking for you too! With the help of these guys-hey, stop laughing Donald, Goofy!"

Donald's and Goofy's faces were bright red from holding in their laughter and Sora had a horrible feeling she knew why they were laughing.

"Are you sure you don't-" Donald began, looking at Riku and Sora yelped, covering his hand while turning to Riku with a blushing face.

"Just ignore what he said!" Sora shouted to Riku who looked a little strange (his face was twisted in a grimace but his eyes revealed nothing). "This duck has no idea what he's saying!"

 _I don't like Riku like that! GAHH! I'm so going to have fried chicken when I'm done with Donald!_

"Who're they?!" Riku asked as Sora pushed Donald and Goofy away so she could have a relatively normal conversation with Riku.

"They're the ones I'm travelling with!" Sora brightened up. "We went to a whole bunch of worlds looking for you and Kairi, you know."

This seemed to have caught Riku's attention (he had previously been staring at Donald and Goofy with an unreadable expression). "Kairi's not with you?"

Sora's smile died a bit. "I…I thought he was with you…? Didn't you say…Kairi's coming with us?"

Riku looked away and nodded. "He would've escaped off the island with us. But I didn't think we'd all go to different worlds."

"Oh…" Sora frowned and looked down.

 _But…I don't feel worried…I mean, my heart is telling me he is fine…I guess we just got to look some more!_

"Well, either way, I'm glad I found you!" Sora smiled, hugging him again without thinking.

"Seriously, there must be something wrong with you." Riku smiled as he looked down at her and patted her on the head. "You sure you're not Kairi or something in disguise?"

Sora pouted. "As if! …Would Kairi take offense to that?"

Riku's mouth twitched. "Hehe. I'm glad you haven't changed, Sora. But don't worry about Kairi. We'll find him. And look on the bright side. All of us have finally gotten to the outside world. We're free to do whatever we want and go wherever the hell we like."

 _I think Riku still had some bad blood between him and the Destiny Island villagers who refused to tell him, Kairi and me how to build or use equipment that could take us off the island…_

There's this lady I met-" Riku began but was stopped suddenly as Donald shouted.

"Are you two done yet?!" Donald hollered, running back towards them with Goofy as a bunch of heartless chased them. "Cause' we got company!"

 _More heartless?! Something is really wrong here…!_

"Riku." Sora said and no more words were needed as the two of them stood together, weapons out and ready.

Riku grinned at her as the heartless closed in on them. "You up for a match after this?"

"Heh." Sora smirked. "Of course. After all, _you'll_ be the one losing this time!"

They launched into action.

"Donald!" Sora shouted, quickly attacking the heartless that had crept near the duck while he was casting spells.

"Thanks!" Donald shot a smile at her and Sora nodded, throwing her keyblade in a straight line and taking out around half a dozen heartless at once.

Riku was flashing in out and out of range, attacking using tricks and tactics Sora had never picked up on before. Sora guess Leon telling her to be smart in battles has helped her to analyse somebody and their attack style and use it to her advantage whether they be opponent or teammate (opponent through exploiting their weakness and teammate through protecting their weakness or complementing their strengths).

 _Hehe…! I'm definitely going to beat Riku this time!_

The battle finished much quicker than the first one and Riku smiled at her, though he seemed to be appraising her. "You've improved. I almost didn't think it was you."

Sora grinned. "I told you, didn't I? You'll be the one losing in our next match! I've been training for our rematch all this time!"

She turned to Donald and Goofy. "This is Donald and this is Goofy. They're pretty awesome and we've been doing a lot of stuff since we were separated!"

Donald smiled at her as Goofy slung an arm around Sora's shoulder. "Gawrsh, Sora, you're great too! After all, you were chosen by the keyblade!"

Sora grinned as Donald rolled his eyes and turned back to Riku, only to freeze in shock.

"So this is the keyblade?" Riku asked lightly, inspecting Sora's keyblade in his hands.

"How'd you do that?!" Sora gasped but Riku just threw it back to her. "Wait, never mind…the important question is, 'You're coming with us, aren't you?'"

There was a small silence before Donald exploded angrily. "That's not your decision to make! And we don't have enough room anyway!"

"Ehhh?!" Sora frowned. "Just ask Cid to add another chair! You can do that, can't you?! Besides, Riku's my friend! Right Ri…ku?"

Sora looked around but Riku was nowhere in sight and she frowned.

"Damn…And I just caught up with him and he goes and leaves…" Sora muttered. "The idiot…!"

Donald and Goofy exchanged glances, Donald a little guilty as he thought he was responsible for chasing Sora's friend off.

"Sora…" Donald said, looking down apologetically.

"Ah well!" Sora smiled, turning to Donald (who sweat dropped) and Goofy (who smiled back). "At least he's okay! He wasn't even injured or anything! And who knows? If he's been looking everywhere for me n' Kairi, it means he can get to other worlds too! In other words, we are both searching through the worlds so we'll find Kairi twice as quick!"

"Guys!" Yuffie ran towards them. "If you guys are done with your assignment, let's go to Cid's house! He asked me ta' find you anyway…"

"Cid has a house?" Sora blurted out and Donald whacked her.

"Tactless…" he muttered as Yuffie grinned and nodded.

"Course he does!" Yuffie smiled. "He just doesn't use it much!"

 _So that's why I always see him in the shop or at the inn…_

They entered one of the houses near the second district door, only to be met with a room full of three gloomy people (Cloud didn't count because he was always gloomy).

"Kinda seems gloomy…" Yuffie tried to crack a joke but the gloomy aura remained and Sora, Donald and Goofy looked at each other worriedly as Leon had his hands brought together and the deepest scowl yet on his face.

"Maleficent's in town." Leon said.

The reaction instant for Yuffie.

"Wha…?" Yuffie's voice was sombre and she seemed shocked and worried.

"Who's that?" Sora asked, tilting her head to the side.

"A witch." Cid frowned.

"It's cuz' of her that our home world got shattered." Yuffie clenched her fists and Sora's eyes widened.

 _But I thought the heartless were the ones who destroyed their world…_

"Ran us off the planet with a full-blown heartless invasion, she did." Cid mumbled. "We ended up in this town."

Aerith spoke up, eyes solemn and Sora wished they'd go back to the happy Aerith. "Maleficent has been controlling the heartless for years. She seems to demonstrate a certain interest in Ansem's reports."

 _So she's controlling the heartless? Wait…That means… If the heartless are the reason the worlds are getting destroyed, Maleficent is the one who is behind it right? So the king is trying to stop her then?_

"Wait. She's interested in Ansem's reports?" Sora frowned and Aerith nodded.

"The data of Ansem's reports has the most extensive documentation of the heartless known to exist. …I can only assume that she plans to use the knowledge for evil." Aerith sighed. "Though we don't know her motive, by now the pages that have fallen into her grasp would be numerous."

 _And the king's trying to find the pages that are left? Or at least try and get the pages Malificent has into his possession? She sounds like bad news…So she's trying to destroy all the worlds…_

Sora looked from one face to the next. Every single one of them seemed worried and Sora suddenly realised it wasn't just because Maleficent had destroyed their home world.

 _Maleficent could very well destroy this one too because I haven't found the keyhole yet…That's why they're worried…_

"In that case!" Sora shouted, narrowing her eyes. "All we gotta' do is find the rest of the pages and stop her, right?! If we stop her, she can't attack any more worlds!"

Cid chuckled. "Of course kid."

Sora stared seriously at them. "If she's in town, then she might be trying to take over right? We'll stop her anyway! She won't get away with destroying any more worlds! I promise!"

"Heh." Yuffie smiled. "For some reason, I find myself believing what you say."

"That's because I _will_ do what I say!" Sora grinned, turning to Donald and Goofy. "Of course, I'll be needing you guys to help me!"

"Right!" Donald and Goofy grinned, catching on to her enthusiasm.

"Well, for now, we'd better get something to eat." Aerith smiled, getting up. "And maybe some tea as well. Sora, would you, Donald and Goofy mind going patrolling after this?"

"Don't worry!" Sora smiled. "We'll do it! It's to ensure Maleficent doesn't do anything when we're unprepared, right?"

Aerith nodded just as Cloud took a step forward and looked out the window.

Sora looked out the window too and she could hear some bells going off in the second district.

 _That's the bells at the top of the gizmo shop…Wonder what's going on?_

Before Sora could really think on the bells ringing, she disappeared in a puff of smoke.

* * *

 **Kairi:** Hey! Where'd Sora go?

 **Me:** Hehe... I wonder where? On another note, I want some fried chicken now...


	23. Simba and the Bells

**Me:** Yay! We'll find out where Sora went!

* * *

"SORA!" Donald squawked as white smoke surrounded Sora for a few seconds before revealing the empty seat. "Where did you go?!"

Yuffie, Leon and Cloud all had their weapons out for any signs of attack and Cid was hollering profanities as he grabbed his gun blaster, cursing whoever tried to attack him in his home.

"Wait!" Goofy shouted, bending down and picking a note up off the ground.

 _ **Sorry to disrupt you all.**_

 _ **I just have to borrow Sora for a few minutes. She'll be back to you very soon.**_

 _ **Merlin.**_

"Oh, false alarm." Yuffie sat back down, eating one of the sushi rolls piled on a plate. "Aren't you guys gonna' eat?"

Cloud turned away from the window, a frown on his face that Aerith immediately picked up on."Cloud?"

Cloud looked up at her before turning away and heading for the front door. "There is heartless outside."

Everyone was up instantly, weapons out again as they all ran outside and indeed saw a bunch of heartless-too much heartless-all heading for the first district.

"It's just like before…" Yuffie frowned. "They're acting weird!"

"This…Could this be the work of Maleficent?" Aerith frowned.

"Let's go!" Donald shouted. "Sora will catch up to us soon! She always seemed to find trouble!"

With Sora:

"Merlin!" Sora gasped as she saw the aged man standing near his table with an old lady next to him.

She was back in his house that seemed cosier than before.

"Ah Sora!" Merlin smiled. "Can you show that rock Leon gave you? I believe the Fairy Godmother here may be able to shed some light onto what it actually is."

The Fairy Godmother was a kind looking old woman, wearing a bluish-purple cloak with a hood. Her grey hair poked out from under it and her dark blue eyes warmed at the sight of seeing Sora.

"Err…Sure…" Sora mumbled, giving a small smile as she pulled Leon's lucky stone out of her jacket pocket and handed it to the fairy godmother, who gasped a little.

"Oh, the poor dear!" she said, taking out her wand and casting a spell.

'What is it?" Sora frowned, moving closer to inspect what was so interesting about the brown and shiny rock.

"Some life forms" the Fairy Godmother explained. "When they lose their worlds to the destruction of darkness, retain such a strong, and good-natured heart that they do not fall victim to the same darkness. I haven't seen it happen before but it seems this one managed to survive but he was crystallised into this form you see now."

"WHAT?!" Sora gasped at the innocent looking rock. "Is he okay?"

"Oh yes." The fairy godmother smiled, handing the stone back. "He calls himself Simba. Why don't you try calling his name while holding the stone dear?"

"Err…Okay…?" Sora frowned, closing her eyes. "Simba…?"

Nothing happened.

"You have to _believe_ he will return to his normal form." The fairy godmother emphasized. "Otherwise you won't even be able to summon him out."

"Alright…!" Sora nodded, closing her eyes and willing herself to believe that she would meet this Simba person.

 _I've had much weirder experiences so it shouldn't be that that to believe…_

"Simba!" Sora shouted and the earth stone gen in her hand glowed brightly for a second and the white light flashed in the room, making Sora shield her eyes.

A roar was heard and Sora yelped, jumping back as she saw another huge cat-like sabor, only it had a bunch of fur on its face and seemed bigger built. He was orange and smiled as soon as he saw Sora.

"Hey!" Simba smiled at her. "Thanks for releasing me."

Sora sweat dropped as she scratched the back of her head nervously.

"Uhh…It was actually her…" Sora pointed to the Fairy Godmother, who shook her head.

"You, wielding the keyblade, managed to unlock and release him from that form with your own power." The Fairy Godmother explained. "It's why we had to call you back here."

"Oh…" Sora nodded, turning to Simba. "Well, you're welcome. But…Please don't try to eat me. I already met this sabor thing and-"

"I'm a lion!" Simba frowned. "Haven't you ever seen one before?"

"Nope!" Sora shrugged, looking at him curiously. "So you won't eat me?"

"No way!" Simba smiled. "You did save me!"

And then he started to glow and he vanished from the spot, leaving nothing behind-not even the earth shine stone he originally was.

"What happened?!" Sora gasped and the Fairy Godmother sighed.

"He can only regain his spirit." The Fairy Godmother explained sadly. "You can still call him and he may even help you but he will not be able to remain in his normal form for long."

Sora looked down sadly.

 _Simba…He lost his world and his physical self…And the keyblade only unlocks his form for a small while …_

"Please help them." The Fairy Godmother sighed. "If you restore the worlds they will be restored to their former selves as well."

 _Restore…the worlds…?_

"How…? How do I restore the worlds?" Sora asked, frowning as the Fairy Godmother exchanged glances with Merlin.

 _I didn't even know that was possible!_

"We do not know yet." The Fairy Godmother said sadly. "We suspect that the one who is controlling the heartless has a reason for destroying the hearts of the worlds and is using that power-for what, we are not sure."

" _ **The data of Ansem's reports has the most extensive documentation of the heartless known to exist. …I can only assume that she plans to use the knowledge for evil." Aerith sighed. "Though we don't know her motive, by now the pages that have fallen into her grasp would be numerous."**_

 _ **And the king's trying to find the pages that are left? Or at least try and get the pages Maleficent has into his possession? She sounds like bad news…So she's trying to destroy all the worlds…**_

 _Could it be Maleficent? She controls the heartless and destroyed Leon and the gang's world…And she's trying to destroy all the worlds…And if Ansem's report contains information about the heart of a world, she may be trying to use that for her own gain…_

"I understand." Sora nodded, clenching her fists. "And…I promise to find a way to restore the worlds! If we defeat this Maleficent character, the hearts of the worlds will be released from her grasp, right? And then they can go back to normal?"

"That's what we believe, yes." Merlin nodded. "Though from what I heard last from the king, Maleficent is proving hard to find and he is being run ragged trying to stop the destruction of the worlds."

"But Leon said Maleficent is in town!" Sora exclaimed and Merlin nodded gravely.

"Yet another reason why I wanted to talk to you." Merlin frowned. "Now might be your chance to stop her and even restore your home. All your friends and family will also be restored back to the island."

Sora's eyes widened and excitement bubbled through her.

 _I can see Riku and Kairi again…Well, hit Riku for ditching me and hug Kairi because I finally found him…_

"Don't worry!" Sora smiled, putting a hand to her heart. "I promise I will restore the worlds! This Maleficent character is gonna' go down! For all the worlds she's destroyed…For Simba's…For Leon's and Aerith's…Cid and Yuffie's world…for my world…I won't let her destroy the worlds anymore!"

Merlin nodded, smiling. "I can see why the keyblade chose you, Sora. You have a very strong heart and your light shines brightly."

Sora nodded just as Merlin held out the book that Cid had made her deliver to him.

"There is a world inside this book." Merlin explained. "However, the book was badly damaged when it found its way into my possession. The third reason why I brought you here is to ask you to look out for the missing pages on your travels."

"Of course!" Sora smiled. "I can do that!"

And then a crash was heard outside.

Ten minutes later…

Heartless were attacking again.

They were forming plans.

Maleficent was probably behind this. Or at least another one of her boss heartless that controlled the smaller ones.

It hadn't taken Sora long to figure it out, as the heartless ambushed her as soon as she ran outside Merlin's house. Swinging rapidly, she had to thank Tarzan silently in her head again for giving her the keychain which transformed her keyblade into one that made it much easier to swing and turn.

 _I hope everyone is okay…_

"Hiiiya!" Sora shouted, twisting her body to slash at the two heartless that had tried sneaking up on her side. "Argh!"

The normal black heartless had sunk into the ground and moved closer to her, jumping up and slashing at her chest as if to grab for her heart. If Sora's quick instincts hadn't alerted her to danger, she probably would've lost her heart by now.

 _That was close…_

Sora groaned as more and more heartless appeared near her.

 _This…Isn't going to work…! I've got to find Maleficent and defeat her!_

Sora looked up from the third district square, knowing Leon and the gang were most likely there, defending the town.

 _If I was an evil witch, where would I be…?_

Later:

Sora was faintly surprised when her predictions on the location of Maleficent turned out to be accurate (her predictions came from the games she and Riku used to play on gaming consoles back on Destiny Islands-bad guys always seemed to be watching from a distance or standing in a deserted area).

Well, sort of.

It wasn't Maleficent Sora found but her…lieutenant in a way? Maleficent obviously(she controlled the heartless so it would've had to be her) had ordered the same boss heartless Sora had first fought in Traverse Town to control smaller heartless again.

 _She must've left Traverse Town already…Or is looking for the keyhole…I have to defeat this heartless quickly…! She may be using this as a distraction…!_

"Sora!"

Sora looked up as she yet again dodged the spinning armoured heartless (it was spinning around like the first time, though it's armour appeared much stronger than last time). A blast of fire shot passed her and hit the heartless, forcing it back a few steps as Leon stopped near her, gunblade raised and scowl on his face as he stared at the boss heartless.

"I had a feeling you'd be facing off against the heartless in charge." Leon muttered before looking at Sora out of the corner of his eye as the heartless got back up. "Have you encountered Maleficent? Or the keyhole of this world?"

"No..!" Sora frowned, just as the purple armoured heartless launched its hands towards them in a slicing fashion as if to cut them up.

 _It's impossible to be looking for the keyhole while this heartless is still around…! But still, if I don't-…_

Sora's thoughts abruptly came to a halt as a shimmer of a keyhole caught her attention.

But she'd walked passed it so many times, the inn being in the second district too…So how had she not noticed it?

"Sora!" Leon shouted and Sora raised her keyblade as the heartless slammed its body into her.

"Gah!" Sora yelped as she was thrown back a few feet bun remained relatively undamaged.

She didn't even get thrown into the wall because hands grabbed her shoulders, preventing her from falling any further back.

"…You okay…?" Cloud said quietly as his eyes were trained on the armour heartless that was struggling to get the upper hand against Leon's attacks.

"Yeah…" Sora nodded, tearing her eyes away from the fight and towards the water fountain where the block background was indeed glowing with the keyhole-the keyhole of the world.

The bells rang again and the background block switched to the next side, covering the keyhole and changing to a different background.

 _The bells! It's the bells controlling the background! It was why I never saw the keyhole before! The bells haven't previously been rung!_

Cloud seemed to sense something big was going on in Sora's mind because he stepped forward to fight it instead as the armour heartless began to change shape, its speed and deadliness increasing tremendously. "I'll help Leon out. Do what you have to do."

Sora nodded, quickly summoning her keyblade as she continued to stand in the corner near the stairs leading towards the inn. "Simba!"

There was a flash of white light and then Simba was back, alert and ready as if he knew there was a battle.

"I need you to do me a favour!" Sora shouted. "Can you get me up to that roof?!"

Simba turned and looked to where Sora pointed (at the top of the Gizmo Shop where she knew the bells were ringing). "Of course!"

Getting on his back was quick work and then she was suddenly flying through the air, leaning forward so the wind didn't catch her and chuck her off of Simba's back. Simba jumped to the left and the right, huge leaps as he made it to the roof of the Gizmo shop within seconds.

Sora had no idea whether to feel exhilarated or nervous but she pushed that away for now.

Time was running out.

She had to close the keyhole before Maleficent noticed it was there.

Before the heartless noticed.

There was one of the spell-casting heartless (that flew and was a green colour) casting a strong wind through the wooden fence that protected the bells from intruders. It was as if the heartless was trying to get to the bells but only causing it to ring.

 _They must've noticed it's somehow going to lead them to the keyhole but they don't know how yet! I still have the advantage!_

And then Sora noticed that three small ducks in red, green and blue respectively (and who looked a lot like a younger Donald) were hiding behind the wooden fence where the bells were too.

She clicked suddenly as a memory came to her of Donald telling her something on the way back from the Deep Jungle.

" _ **I have three nephews who work at Traverse Town." Donald shook his head. "But they're a real handful, those three…"**_

The wind spell –casting heartless wasn't trying to get to the bells.

It was trying to get to the three young ducks.

Donald's nephews.

 _Well, orders or not, the heartless are still pretty stupid to not notice everything! Let's go save us some Donald mini ducks!_

"Simba!" Sora shouted and Simba nodded, claws already out as he launched at the heartless with a mighty roar.

Sora joined him a second later, destroying the reinforcements that kept coming all the while shouting at Donald's nephews who were safely protected behind the wooden fence to ring the bell three times (so she could get the keyhole background again and safely lock the world so it wasn't destroyed).

"HURRY!" Sora shouted as more reinforcements came.

How many had she defeated now? A hundred? Two hundred?

Another 10 appeared.

A groan escaped her lips as the first bell rang again and Sora ran forward, attacking the heartless while Simba covered behind her, protecting the heartless from getting closer to the wooden fence and Donald's nephews.

The second bell rang.

"SIMBA!" Sora shouted to the lion who was facing off against six soldier heartless. "I need to do something quickly! It's really important!"

Simba nodded, claws slashing viciously at the heartless that launched at him. "Go! I can handle them!"

Sora nodded, worry seeping into her as she ran down the building (yes, vertically-she found it wasn't so hard to defy gravity anymore-she was getting stronger and her stomach muscles were building so she didn't immediately sag due to gravity). She could see Leon and Cloud still fighting the boss heartless, weapons out as they speedily attacked it and it matched them blow for blow.

 _For once I'm glad I'm not fighting that boss…Cloud and Leon beat me instantly (which is even quicker than Riku). If they're having trouble fighting this improved armour heartless, I'd hate to have seen me…_

Of course, the moment her feel touched the ground the boss heartless spun towards the water fountain. Sora's eyes widened in horror as Leon and Cloud tensed, weapons raised and expecting an attack (they hadn't seen the keyhole yet).

"NOO!" Sora shouted, keyblade out as she thought desperately on anything that could help her.

" _ **Now, to cast magic you need to focus yourself. Your willpower to cast also plays a vital role. You have to**_ _ **want**_ _ **to burn your enemies, stop them or freeze them." Merlin said and Sora nodded, concentrating a bit as she tried to imagine the moving table as a heartless (cause' she very much wanted to defeat them).**_

"FIRE!" Sora shouted, fire erupting from her keyblade and towards the boss heartless as she ran passed Leon and Cloud, eyes wide as she continued to try and get closer despite her spell most likely going to stop the heartless.

A mini explosion rocked the area and Sora was thrown back, landing painfully on the ground as she knocked her head.

 _Must…Get…Up…Keyhole…Must lock…Keyhole…_

Stumbling as she got up, Sora's vision wavered as she ran towards where the keyhole was, still glowing brightly as she heard more heartless appear behind her.

 _Keyhole…Keyhole…_

Sora had no idea how she managed to do it but the next second she knew, a white beam was coming out of her keyblade and into Traverse Town's keyhole. Sora waited for a few tense seconds before relief flooded her when she heard the resounding 'click' that determined the keyhole was locked and safe now.

"Sora, you okay?" Yuffie asked, jumping next to her and handing her a potion even as the heartless started to disappear. "The boss heartless must'a been defeated-that or Maleficent leaving town."

 _Well…She can't destroy Traverse Town anymore…It's safe…And…I have a feeling she's not one to waste her 'resources' (ie. the heartless) to fight in worlds she can't control…_

Sora's legs were weak as she drank the potion on one go, wincing as her head pounded and her arm's slash (when had she got that?) knitted her skin back together and healed her.

"You both okay?"

Leon was back and Sora nodded (albeit shakily) as she looked at the remaining heartless surrounding them…Or at least, they were until Donald's thunder spell took care of them.

"Sora!" Aerith frowned, running towards them. "Leon, Cloud, Yuffie! Are you all okay?"

"I'm okay…" Sora mumbled as she looked up at Aerith. "Though I'm still a little sore…"

 _Donald did warn me at the Coliseum to be careful and not reopen my wounds because potions don't fully heal wounds…_

"WHAT?!" Donald shouted and Sora looked up from the ground (when had she been looking down? Was she really so tired she couldn't even keep her head up?). "What're you three doing outside your shop? It's dangerous!"

Donald was glaring at his three nephews but Sora could see the paleness on his face and the fear that he had almost lost them.

"Sorry uncle Donald…" one of Donald's nephews-the red one-said sadly. "We wanted to see the bell but a heartless caught us…"

 _So that was why the bell rang earlier…They'd been struggling all this time…Thankfully I went to the bell…_

"For now, why don't we all go and get some rest…" Aerith suggested as Cid came towards them from the first district.

"Aye" Cid nodded, grinning. "There aint' so sign of the heartless. We can relax now."

"What about Maleficent?" Yuffie frowned. "What if she comes back?"

"She has no reason to.."Sora mumbled tiredly. "I locked the keyhole…"

"Really?!" Yuffie beamed. "Great!"

"Yeah!" Goofy laughed (when had he gotten there?). "But ah…I think Sora's gonna' fall asleep standing if we don't get inside…"

Sora couldn't argue with that (What? She _was_ tired. She'd come back from Tarzan's world at least 5 hours ago and she had already been running off lack of sleep then-added to all the fighting they had done and the fire magic she had just cast as well as the summoning of Simba and she was ready to drop).

"See you Sora! Call me again if you ever need a hand!"

Sora distantly smiled as she heard Simba say goodbye.

She was glad when she made it back to her bed to sleep.

Sleep was good.

She was pretty sure that was what most of the others thought the same.

Next day: 10am

"Urghh…." Donald muttered as Sora walked around the room sorting her bag. "Sora, be quiet! I'm trying to sleep…."

"Okay…." Sora yawned.

She still felt tired but she wanted to keep moving and find the next world-maybe Kairi was on it? And even if Kairi wasn't, she could lock the keyhole like the king wanted her to do.

 _I wonder where the navigation gummi we found at Tarzan's world will take us…_

Changing into her normal black jacket with white sleeves, red top and shorts in the bathroom, Sora exited with another yawn.

 _Maybe I should just have a nap…_

Sora jostled herself awake.

 _No! There are worlds counting on me! This isn't a simple thing like building a raft or doing a maths test…People are counting on me!_

"Is something troubling you Sora?" Aerith walked from her bedroom towards her, face set into a frown. "Are you still hurt?"

"Nah. I'm fine." Sora grinned weakly. "I…Hehe, I'm just hungry…"

Aerith looked as if she didn't believe her but they both walked to the kitchen to get some food.

Sometime later..

"I can't find the gummi block!" Donald shouted as he ran into the kitchen and five heads swerved to him.

"I already gave it to Cid." Sora explained. "I thought that, if he already had it installed, when you woke up we could leave…"

This time it wasn't only Aerith who was shooting Sora a weird look. Leon was as well. They already knew that the normal Sora would've let Donald and Goofy handle the preparations. The fact that she was doing it was strange.

"Gawrsh, you sure are eager today!" Goofy laughed.

"Y-Yeah…" Sora mumbled, looking at the ground.

 _We have to protect all the worlds…!_

"Sora, come with me." Leon said suddenly, getting up out of his chair and walking out of the kitchen, leaving a hurrying Sora to catch up to him.

They walked all the way to the third district where Leon leaned against the wall and Sora fidgeted for a while, wondering why Leon wasn't speaking.

"What's bothering you?" Leon asked suddenly, breaking the heartless-free silence.

"N-Nothing…" Sora looked down and Leon sighed, running a hand through his hair.

"Seems to me like you're worried about something." Leon said. "Care to tell me what that is?"

Sora looked up at Leon again, worry rising within her like raging seawater during a storm. "Merlin said Maleficent has been destroying all the worlds cause' she might be trying to use the worlds' hearts' power for something evil. And I have'ta protect the worlds! I can't sit around and let them be taken! And if I defeat her, the worlds can be restored!"

Sora said this all really fast, and even in the past she had never been good at hiding secrets. Whenever something was bothering her, it was always noticeable to others because she very _rarely_ let anything bother her. As such, after she said this her posture was tense and her eyes downcast.

Leon frowned as he took it all in, folding his arms in thought. "Sora, think for a moment. What did Merlin say?"

"I…I just told you…!" Sora frowned at Leon, annoyance creeping into her.

"You just told me that if you defeat Maleficent, the worlds can be restored." Leon said and Sora paused, not really understanding what he was getting at but willing to listen for the moment. "Then, even if more worlds do get taken by the heartless, you can restore them in the end anyway. You cannot be everywhere at once and you need to make sure you are strong enough to _go_ to other worlds."

"That's…" Sora frowned, looking down. "I…I hadn't thought of that…"

"Your king is bound to know you'll run into Maleficent anyway as you stop more and more of her plans." Leon said, closing his eyes as stopped leaning on the wall. "I presume that's also why Merlin was talking to you?"

"Yeah. He's training me in magic…" Sora nodded as the worry slowly fell away from her.

"And you've already got good results." Leon's mouth twitched into a smile as his bright blue eyes stared at her proudly. "Your fire was very powerful yesterday."

Sora scratched the back of her head and smiled basfully. "It was?"

 _Well, at least I know we're going to come across Maleficent sooner or later! She's gonna' get mad at us at the more worlds we save!_

"Thanks Leon…" Sora looked at him before smiling. "I'm glad I talked to you…"

Leon nodded. "Let's go back so you can go to the next world."

Sora nodded, energy and recovery back full force. "Don't worry! We'll definitely protect this next world too!"

"Right." Leon nodded, a twitch at the corner of his mouth as Sora summoned her green keyblade and looked at it.

"We're going to protect the worlds!" Sora grinned. "And find Riku and Kairi…Though I think we're going to go a little harder in our rematch with Riku cause' he ran off on me…I wonder if he's mad or something…?"

They walked for a few moments before Leon interrupted Sora's muttering.

"So, what's the deal with your keyblade?" Leon raised his eyebrows at the green keyblade with the weird bar like keys where the crown was meant to be.

"Tarzan seemed to know that a keychain enhances the keyblade." Sora smiled. "Or something like that anyway. He said his gift will strengthen my heart and when I put it on the keyblade keychain part-woom!"

Leon nodded. "I see."

"Oh yeah!" Sora remembered suddenly as they walked through the second district and towards the inn. "You know the earthshine stone you gave me? It turns out it was a summon stone-that lion that you saw? That was him ! His name's Simba! He's really cool."

"I see." Leon said again and Sora frowned, wondering if he was listening.

"Hey…" Sora said suddenly, struck with an idea. "Can you train and fight with me so I can improve?"

Leon looked at her finally, a frown on his face. "Why?"

"So I can be strong enough to defeat Maleficent!" Sora exclaimed, frowning. "You're really good and fighting and…"

"Fine." Leon nodded. "As soon as you get back from the next world, be ready."

Sora grinned. "Of course! I'll even help save you from the Barley Tea you don't like that Aerith always gives you!"

Leon twitched.

* * *

 **Me:** So Sora is finally starting to see she has a responsibility now. Any ideas for the next world?


	24. In Which Many People Fail

**Me:** Alright! Updates will be going quicker now (hopefully)!

 **Sora:** Aren't you going to say Jasmine's male name?

 **Me:** *smiles* But then it's no longer a secret! We'll just have to wait and see when Aladdin's world finally comes up!

* * *

'Hey guys!" Chip shouted as soon as Sora, Donald and Goofy got onto the ship. "The Coliseum's repaired! There's a tournament going on in ten minutes! How about we participate?"

"It was repaired already?" Sora asked surprised before shrugging.

It wasn't _that_ much of a surprise if she thought about it. With a super strong guy like Hercules, lifting and repairing didn't seem that hard at all.

"Yeah!" Dale grinned. "There's apparently a great reward for the winner!"

"Really?!" Sora asked, excitement flowing through her. "Hang on…In ten minutes?! We'll never get there in time!"

"Ah-ha~" Chip grinned. "That's where you're wrong!"

"Yep!" Dale smiled. "That Cid guy also installed a warp-gummi. It allows us to go to places we've visited before instantly!"

"Really?!" Sora grinned as she quickly put her seat belt on. "Great! Guys, how about it?!"

 _This is a perfect opportunity to train! Not to mention we can search to Coliseum for any signs of the keyhole! And if we finish the tournament quickly (I'm pretty sure it should only take an hour or two), we can still head to the new world straight after!_

"Of course!" Donald smirked. "If we win, we'll probably have plenty of money to restock on potions and buy some more ethers-maybe even stronger potions that fully heal a person without the threat of reopening wounds!"

"Uh…They're called elixirs, right?" Goofy smiled. "Well, Sora already has one!"

 _That's right…They are rare or something…._

"Good! Keep it unless you're literally dying and still need to fight!" Donald said and then they were exiting Traverse Town.

"Cid left some instructions…" Donald muttered as he read it out. "Press the location you want to go to on the map and a message will appear asking if you want to warp. To warp, press 'yes'."

Donald nodded, sorting through the screen as he found the coliseum.

"Ah Donald….?" Goofy asked the duck as he picked up the note. "Cid left some more words on the paper…"

"Ah, who cares?!" Donald huffed. "We only need to know how to work the warp gummi!"

Donald pressed the warp button.

Coliseum:

"What happened to you guys?" Phil asked as they walked in the door.

"Don't ask." Sora scowled. "Let's just say Donald should read _everything_ that Cid writes on the instruction paper next time!"

"How was I to know there was a safety latch meant to be put in place so we wouldn't be affected?" Donald quacked back.

"Now now…" Goofy tried to placate them but Phil ended up achieving that.

"Are you guys here to participate or not?" Phil asked impatiently. "There isn't that much of a crowd because it's a minor tournament but there will be people watching and that means you can't waste time!"

"Alright!" Sora grinned, summoning her keyblade. "Let's fight!"

"Good. You have an hour to get from the tenth round to the first and winning them all." Phil explained as he lead them to the arena. "We start in two minutes."

An hour later..

"I can't believe all the opponents were heartless…" Sora mumbled but eventually she was back to grinning, the achievement raising her spirits. "And we won! Did you see that?! We actually won!"

"Yeah." Phil said, coming in and handing them their prize: 1000 munny. "Even _I_ can't believe it."

"What's that supposed to mean?!" Sora frowned at Phil, who merely frowned back.

"Don't get cocky yet kid." Phil warned and Sora was surprised to note he was worried about them. "Remember, this was only a minor tournament. Nobody really tough participates in these matches. It'll be the next few tournaments that are going to become hard."

Sora nodded, looking down with a sigh.

Still. It would've been nice to have been encouraged by Phil instead of warned.

 _Stupid Phil…_

"Don't be stubborn Phil. I know you're secretly happy for them" Hercules walked into the resting room, smiling at the trio. "Great job out there! I'll definitely be seeing you three in the Hercules Tournament in a few days. If you pass all the rounds in that tournament, as a bonus you'll get to fight me."

Sora grinned as Donald grabbed the money and started counting it, rather than to pay attention to the conversation. "That's fine! That's the way to get stronger after all!"

"Great, now why don't you guys scamper and prepare for the next tournament?" Phil asked, putting their names at the top of the tournament ladder for the Phil Cup. "I got to prepare for the next tournament _already_!"

Sora grinned as Goofy chuckled and they (yes, Donald was with them even though he was too busy counting the money) headed for the door.

"Thanks for the money!" Sora shouted as Goofy steered Donald towards the ship (he was _still_ counting the money). "Let's go to the next world, Donald! You can count the money while I drive the ship!"

 _This_ seemed to bring Donald out of his 'counting money' mania.

"You're not driving the Gummi Ship!"

 _Well, it was worth a try…_

It was only as they were half an hour into the journey to the new world that Sora realised they'd forgotten to look around for the keyhole in the Coliseum.

 _Oh well…The heartless seemed to be fixed on entering the tournaments rather than looking around for the keyhole…I'd say that world's safe for now…And besides, I'll be coming back in a few days for the Hercules Tournament anyway!_

With that thought, Sora began aiming at the heartless ships as they got closer and closer to the gummi ship, blasting them away.

 _Man, if only Riku had decided to come with us…Oh well, he'll probably stop by soon if he finds Kairi or when he wants to talk to me…Right now, it's onto a new world and finding the keyhole!_

45 mins later…

"Alright! Let's park!" Donald squawked out. "Sora, don't touch _anything._ "

Sora, who was just about to touch the coordinates on the gummi ship screen, pouted before stepping away with her hands up and an innocent expression at Donald's face.

"Okay!" Sora grinned. "I won't touch anything…For now!"

"Hyuk!" Goofy laughed as Donald glared. "You'll never be able to get Sora away from trying the gummi ship! Maybe ya' should just let her have a try?"

"Are you kidding?!" Donald shouted. "She nearly caused us to crash!"

"That was an accident!" Sora shouted back.

"Ahh…Fellas?" Goofy asked, smiling still. "Maybe we should enter the world?"

"Okay…" Donald nodded, heading to the door.

"Sure." Sora nodded, following Donald before a mischievous grin came across her face. "Hey Donald! I bet I can defeat more heartless than you can!"

Donald eyed her warily as they waited for Chip to unlock the door. "What do you get if you win?"

"To drive the ship, of course!" Sora beamed and before Donald could refuse, she went on. "And if you win, when I participate in the Hercules Tournament in two days _you_ can have all the money that we win!"

Donald frowned. "We're all participating _together_ , Sora _._ "

"Whaaaaaaaaaat?" Sora whined as the door lock finally opened. "What do you mean-Hey, the whole world is water! We'll drown!"

Donald rolled his eyes. "I _am_ a magician, you know."

"Yep!" Goofy laughed. "Just wait and see, Sora!"

Sora frowned as she looked down at the vast ocean before her eyes. She could see nothing else for miles on end and she was strongly reminded of her island for a second.

 _It's been about a week and I've found Riku but not Kairi…I hope he's okay…_

Sora's thoughts were cut off when she felt Donald push her out of the gummi ship and straight into the water five metres below her.

"DOOONNNNNNNNNNNNAAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLLDDDDDDDDDDD!" Sora shouted as she fell through the air and hit the water with a loud splash.

"Come on Donald!" Googy laughed as he jumped in the water too.

Donald sighed, muttering under his breath as he cast the spell and prepared to jump. "Why does Sora always think I do these types of things? She didn't even _suspect_ it was Goofy…"

When Sora had fell into the water, there was a brief flash of light around her and she felt… _different._ Bubbles sprang up around her and she started swimming back to the top of the water, only to yelp as Goofy-or at least what she assumed was Goofy-fell in the water beside her.

The reason she had trouble pinpointing if it was Goofy was because his shield had turned into a shell.

And the rest of him was now a turtle.

"Look out below!" Donald shouted just as Sora got thrown back a little as Donald crashed into her.

"Ouch! Donald!" Sora shouted. "First you throw me off the ship and now you ram into me!"

Donald scowled at her but he blinked slowly, at the exact same time as Sora did when they finally noticed each other's new appearance.

"GAH!" Sora shouted, taking a step back…Or at least _trying_ to take a step back and only causing herself to wobble dangerously to her left and right.

… _And hadn't she been under water for over a minute now?_

Staring at the water below, her eyes widened comically as she caught sight of a fish tail…that extended all the way to her belly.

"…Donald, what the heck did you do to me?" Sora asked the squid (that _was_ Donald, wasn't it?)

Donald sighed as he tried using all his eight legs to hand motion while explaining. "Obviously we needed to-"

"Look out fellas!" Goofy shouted as he spun around in a circle after trying to reach them and ended up cutting through the air.

"I thought turtles were meant to be slow…" Sora muttered before shaking her head and turning back to Donald. "Wait, that's not what I meant! What's going on?! Why are you and Goofy different? Why am I…"

Sora looked down at herself again, mouth widening in shock when she saw two seashells that obviously summarized one of her childhood myths. "…A meremad?"

"Don't you mean mermaid?" Donald raised his eyebrows.

 _Opps…Sometimes species detection class was pretty boring that I forget some names…Or maybe fell asleep through them…_

"Yeah, those…" Sora frowned as she tried to swim around but only succeeded in causing herself to spin in a circle. "Argh…This is so hard to move!"

"Tell me about it!" Donald said, trying to move forward with two of his tentacles but only managing to squirt ink. "Damn it!"

"Guys, this is fun!" Goofy smiled as he swam around them without any problems. "You can do it!"

Sora and Donald's mouths dropped open.

"How're you doing that?!" Sora asked as she tried to use her legs… _leg_ to mimic him.

She only succeeded in falling into some (luckily) soft plants. It was only then that Sora realised they were in some type of clearing, with a bunch of colourful coral and plants surrounding them in a beautiful harmony of colours.

* * *

 **Me:** aannd we've hit Ariel's world!

 **Donald:** No thanks to Sora and all her mourning for Fluffy.

 **Sora:** Um... Are you sniffing paopu leaves?

 **Donald:** No! Are you sure you're not though? I swear, you're almost a genius at getting a safety-precaution designed ship to nearly crash... _again_.

 **Me:** Anyhow, review with feedback or something and thank you to everyone who has done so already!


	25. Sora Can Relate To Ariel

**Me:** Okay! We got ourselves a flashback here! And Sora meets Ariel and her father!

* * *

Flashback:

" _Riku! Riku!" Sora shouted excitedly as she ran up to the twelve year old. "Kairi an' me found this awesome spot! Come check it out!"_

" _Sure but first-Hey, wait!" Riku shouted as Sora dragged him off but eventually he was running with the hyperactive Sora as they went to the west of the island._

" _Hey!" Kairi grinned at them. "You up for some swimming?"_

 _Riku raised his eyebrows at Sora. "Funny. I don't remember you mentioning swimming."_

 _Sora grinned, scratching the back of her head nervously. "I forgot…Anyway, come on! It's really amazing!"_

 _Riku rolled his eyes but the three of them launched into the water and Sora lead the way to the underwater plant garden, where hundreds (okay, maybe she was exaggerating) of fish swam in all colours and sizes._

 _There was sponge plants in orange, yellow, red and even purple and the coral emerged in some spots where the sun shined the most. Down on the sand below were oyster shells and clam shells and even a couple of crabs crawling around._

 _As they all emerged around half a minute later, Sora and Kairi grinned at Riku, who seemed impressed._

" _I didn't think you could hold your breath for so long, Sora." Riku grinned._

 _Sora threw some water at him._

End Flashback

"Wow…" Donald gasped as Goofy finally stopped rolling and they all took the chance to look at the scenery.

"This reminds me of my island." Sora admitted, grinning a bit though she felt a touch of sadness when she realised the underwater garden she, Riku and Kairi played at probably disappeared with the rest of her island.

 _But we can get it back._

"Don't worry Sora." Goofy smiled. "I'm sure we'll-"

"Run!"

A voice with a weird male accent suddenly interrupted Goofy and the trio turned to where they heard the voice come from.

The whole clearing was surrounded by rock of coral, leaving no way out except upwards or through a small cave they hadn't noticed earlier. Though that cave came a crab with the weird voice they had heard earlier, along with a _actual_ mermaid and a fish stripped yellow and blue.

"Who're you?" the mermaid (she had long red hair that flowed behind her back and a green fin.

"Ariel, now's not the time!" the crab yelled. "Those creatures are getting closer and these strangers might be allies with them!"

 _Creatures…?_

Sora's eyes widened as she caught sight of the heartless and she looked at Donald and Goofy, who quickly got out their weapons. Summoning her keyblade, Sora's eyes narrowed in concentration.

 _If there's any-a-time to learn to swim as a mermaid, it'll be now!_

Sora launched forward and though she did it awkwardly, she managed to smash her keyblade into the first of three heartless.

The heartless looked like jellyfish except they had the heartless emblem on them and seemed bent on trying to attack them near their hearts, as if to take them.

 _Stupid fin! Gah! I can swim fine with two legs but why can't I swim good with one leg?! It shouldn't make that much of a difference!_

" _ **Sometimes, to defeat an enemy, you have to be quicker and smarter." Leon told her.**_

And Sora didn't need any more mental reminders.

"FIRE!" Sora shouted and to her utmost relief, fire exploded from her keyblade and shot the other two heartless while Donald and Goofy took care of the reinforcements that had arrived.

 _Man, Leon's words are really saving my behind…Meh, I'll just have to get better so I think instantly on what to do if I'm ever in trouble._

"That was amazing!"

Sora grinned bashfully as the mermaid the crab had called 'Ariel' came towards them, eyes shining in awe.

"It was nothing." Sora smiled.

"Who're you?" the crab asked suspiciously, quickly coming in front of Ariel and keeping her back. "I've never seen you before."

 _Oh no! Think quickly! That stupid rule about non-interference means we can't say anything about coming from another world! Think! Think!_

"Ah…I'm Sora, that's Donald and he's Goofy…" Sora introduced them all as she stared at the red crab who was still scowling. "We ah…Come from ah… far away…And we're not really used to these waters…"

"Oh!" the girl mermaid seemed delighted. "I'm Ariel, that's Sebastian (the crab) and this is Flounder (the fish). Welcome to Atlantica!"

"Yeah.." Sora smiled as Ariel swam around her in a circle, studying her.

"You seem a bit different…" Ariel smiled, eyeing her curiously. "Is that how you swim in your waters?"

"Yeah…" Sora nodded again as Donald came towards her. "Like I said, we're not really used to swimming here…"

"You'll get the hang of it! If you want to swim like us, just push your tail fin back and forth." Ariel smiled. "Anyway, thanks for taking care of those creatures."

"It was no problem." Goofy grinned, rolling around in the air as he tried to control his movement in the water.

"What brings you here anyway?" Ariel asked curiously.

"We're looking for the-" Sora began just as Donald shut her mouth.

 _I was just going to say 'keyhole' but I guess even that's not allowed…_

"Hmm?" Ariel tilted her head as she stared at them. "Oh-it's a secret?"

"Yeah…" Sora nodded as Donald shook his head in exasperation. "Sorry."

"That's okay." Ariel smiled. "My dad's the king of these waters though. I'm sure he'll be able to help you-after all, he knows a lot. Why don't you come with us back to the palace?"

Sora looked at Donald and Goofy, Donald who seemed like he didn't like the idea but was out of other options and Goofy who seemed he didn't mind whatever they did.

"Sure!" Sora grinned.

 _And who knows-maybe the king of the waters does know where the keyhole is! I mean, somebody has to, right?_

At the Palace:

The palace was amazing, a mix of purple, blue and green lights as they swam closer and closer (yes, Sora was finally getting the hang of controlling her tail fin). Fortunately, the heartless didn't follow them as the reached the palace but unfortunately for Sora, there was no other mer-people for her to see (this was a childhood myth she was encountering, after all!).

"We still shouldn't be asking about the keyhole." Donald mumbled, a frown on his face. "I say we just look around-"

"You know that's waste time!" Sora shot back. "Besides, it's not like he'll know what we're talking about if he doesn't know what the keyhole is! We can just say we're looking for some legendary treasure or something and it's found there!"

"Ah…fellas?" Goofy asked and they stopped swimming and bickering, turning to Goofy who was pointing in front of them. "I think Ariel's dad already heard everything…"

Both Donald and Sora gasped and took a step (swam a step?) backwards as they saw the tough looking but long white bearded merman standing in front of them, a huge golden fork like weapon by his side.

"Unfortunately, I _do_ know what you're talking about." The man scowled as Ariel stood by the side. "But I will have nothing to do with it!"

 _Wait-why? We're here to protect the keyhole!_

"Daddy-" Ariel began but her father cut her off, scowling once more at Ariel this time.

"I thought I told you to stay inside the palace?!" he glared. "How many times to I have to tell you? Those creatures can't get inside so stay here where you're safe!"

Ariel glared back before turning and running away, grabbing Sora's hand and dragging her along.

"A-Ariel, wait!" Sora panicked as they swam further away from the palace. "It's not safe!"

They were passing a wide underwater canyon, leaving a lot of light to see so they didn't get lost and Sora could see small underwater volcanoes as well as giant clams and she even saw a dolphin swimming around a lower part of the canyon.

"My father was just exaggerating." Ariel frowned as they swam along. "I'm sorry what he said. I'll help you look for this 'keyhole' thing, was it?"

"But your dad-" Sora began concerned but Ariel only smiled.

"Don't worry about it." Ariel shook her head. "He never listens to me. He won't let me go explore the outside world or anything."

Sora startled at this. "You want to explore the outside world?"

 _She's just like I am…Like I_ _ **was**_ _…I can explore…_

"Yeah." Ariel smiled, unknowing to Sora's inner guilt.

 _Here she is hoping to go to the outside world and I'm pretending I'm from another ocean and tricking her when I'm from the outside world…_

"Here we go!" Ariel smiled, pushing across a rock.

"Wait till you see it!" Flounder smiled at them as he swum in after Ariel.

They seemed to have entered some sort of spiraling coral. Dozens upon dozens of items were placed upon parts of the corals-treasure chests, statues, necklaces. All types of things that could fall into the ocean by mistake.

"These are all from the outside world…" Ariel smiled as she turned to look at them. "I wish I could-"

Ariel broke off silently as she really, _really_ got a glance at her items.

Sora blanched as she finally noticed too.

Everything was trashed, damaged or broken.

Ariel's father, King Triton, stood in the corner glaring at Ariel.

"What…?" Ariel mumbled, her voice faltering at the end.

"You left again?!" her father glared. "I told you to stay-"

"These were all the things Flounder and I collected!" Ariel shouted, tears coming out of her eyes. "This…This is too much!"

With that last thought, she turned and swam out the grotto without a second look. There was silence for a moment before Sora finally found her voice and clenched her fists.

 _This is much worse than Riku, Kairi and I faced! At least the adults on our island let us dream! Sure, they forbid us from leaving too but they never destroyed our stuff!_

* * *

 **Me:** Sora becomes sympathetic with Ariel and the water darkens (you know, cause' Ursala's coming)

 **Sora:**...that was the lamest joke.

 **Me:** *smiles happily* I know!


	26. Ursula and Triton's Sadness

**Me:I** loved writing this chapter! Thank you **Mana** for the idea!

* * *

"They were Ariel's precious things!" Sora glared at her father. "Why would you-"

"It wasn't me." King Triton frowned, making Sora pause. "I came because I saw shadows here. This place was already destroyed when I got here."

"O-Oh…Sorry…" Sora said, looking down guiltily.

"Yeah." Donald nodded.

"You three…One of you is the key bearer, correct?"

The three of them looked up in surprise at the serious look on King Triton's face.

"By the looks on your faces, that is correct." He frowned. "However, you must already know then that we belong to different worlds that should not interfere with each other. All of you are breaking this rule."

"Yeah but-" Donald began but Ariel's father cut him off, turning his back to them.

"The key holder will only bring disaster and disrupt the peace in this world." King Triton frowned. "I'm thankful you saved my daughter however, you needn't worry about her anymore. I will wait for her at the palace. Please leave."

With that, King Triton swam off and left an angry Donald and Goofy (he was actually angry?) and a stunned Sora.

 _The keyblade…brings disaster and disruption…?_

"Don't listen to him, Sora!" Donald shouted to Sora, who still seemed shocked that somebody would think the keyblade brings disaster and disruption.

 _What did he mean by that…?_

"Don't look so sad, Sora!" Goofy frowned. "It's only cause' the heartless are always linked with the keyhole that some people think it's the keyblade's fault and think it's better if they stay away from the key."

Sora smiled at Goofy. "That's the most I've ever heard you explain at once, Goofy!"

Goofy and Donald blinked before smiling.

"True! Hyuk!" Goofy said happily. "But we can't give up looking for the keyhole, cause' we need to protect this world!"

 _He's right…!_

"Okay!" Sora grinned. "Let's head back to the palace and try to convince King Triton one more time!"

"Great." Flounder said, coming towards them. "I'll show you the way."

"Where's Ariel?" Goofy asked and Flounder looked down sadly.

"I lost sight of her." Flounder explained. "So I'll show you guys back to the palace and wait there for Ariel when she returns."

"Okay!" Donald announced. "Let's get going!"

Palace, Palace, Palace:

"I can understand where King Triton is coming from…" Sora admitted as Flounder explained how he was really a good king. "I mean, wanting to protect what's important to you…"

 _Riku, Kairi, Donald, Goofy…Everybody in Traverse Town…All the friends I've made on my journey so far…_

"But we have a mission to accomplish." Sora clenched her fists as she stared seriously at the ground. "We are protecting people and we can't leave just because King Triton thinks it's wrong. Not when we're doing it to help people-to protect the worlds from heartless and evil people like Maleficent."

Donald and Goofy smiled at each other, much to Sora's confusion as they entered the palace and walked through the pillars on either side of them towards the king's chair.

"You're growing up!" Goofy smiled. "I'm sure your pals will be surprised!"

"Hmph!" Sora poked her tongue out though she was smiling. "I've _always_ been mature, thanks-WHAA!"

"WHAA!" Donald squawked at the same time while Goofy just yelped.

A huge black squid lady slammed into them, running passed them as she shoved them away. Sora spun for a few seconds, trying to get her coordination back as she reached for anything to hold onto to stop her from spinning.

 _Urgh…I think I'm gonna be sick if I don't stop spinning…_

Finally she did stop spinning thanks to Flounder and as she regained her balance, she saw a red blur fly passed.

"Ariel!" Sora shouted, quickly swimming after her friend that seemed to be deep set on following the squid lady. "Guys, come on! Something doesn't seem right!"

"Ariel! You can't go after her alone!" Sebastian was swimming as fast as he could but Sora quickly snatched him in her hands.

"What happened?" she asked as Donald and Goofy finally regained their balance and swum towards her and the crab.

Swim, swim, swim:

"Ariel!" Sora shouted in relief as she saw the mermaid in question near a shipwreck (it was a huge ship-if only they had ships that size on Destiny Island).

"I can't believe King Triton was turned into dat' creature…" Sebastian cried out. "Ursula's da' one who's at fault!"

"don't worry! We'll stop her!" Sora frowned.

 _She may even be working with Maleficent…Why else would she be after the keyhole?_

"I've lost her…" Ariel frowned as they came closer to the shipwreck were she was floating above."But..She has to be around here somewhere…"

"Let's spread out." Sora suggested and everyone nodded.

The ship was old and rickety, the wood rotting in some places from being water logged.

 _It seemed like such a good ship…such a pity…WAIT! Now's not the time!_

Swimming in the ship with Ariel and Goofy, they looked through the numerous barrels and items but found nothing at all.

"WAAHHHHHHHHH!" Donald shouted as he swam down into the ship cabin. "S-S-S-SHARK!"

"What?" Sora began, just as the glass window in the cabin was smashed with such force the creature that had smashed into it headed straight for them. "AAAHHHHHHHHHHH!"

The shark was humongous and grey, with razor sharp teeth.

On Destiny Islands, the sailors often told stories about them and how they looked similar to dolphins but were, in fact, very dangerous.

Sora wanted to disagree with them.

The shark continued to squirm it's way to them, the only thing stopping it from eating them straight out was the fact that its body was too big to fit through the whole broken cabin window. But the groaning of the wooden ship alerted Sora to the fact that it wouldn't stop the shark for long.

"Follow me!" Ariel cried out as she swam out the trap door that had originally led them to the lower deck.

The ship was starting to move now, the force of the shark sending it rocking backwards and forwards as the shark tried to escape from its stuck position.

"We should run!" Donald shouted and without further encouragement, the four (Sebastian and Flounder had went back before they'd entered the ship to stay with King Triton) of them headed for the cave.

A loud boom and sound of breaking wood alerted them to the fact the shark was finally free. Turning around, Sora's eyes widened in terror and she shot the first spell that came to mind.

"FIRE!"

The fire flew through the water and hit the shark straight on…Only to do no damage except enrage the shark further.

"SORA!"

She wasn't sure who had called out to her as she watched the monster come closer to her, its black eyes hungry for its prey…

"LOOK OUT!"

Goofy nudged her out of the way and the shark chomped down on Goofy.

"NO!" Sora shouted, her body finally kicking to action as the shark…let Goofy go?

Goofy blinked in amazement and they all stared as the shark turned tail and fled.

What…What just happened…?"

"Look!" Ariel cried out happily. "Your shell Goofy…! It broke the shark's teeth!"

Sora relaxed as she looked at Goofy who was laughing and seemed uninjured…At least until she whacked him over the head at the exact same moment as Donald.

"You big palooka!" Donald shouted in outrage. "What were you thinking?!"

"He's right!" Sora shouted angrily. "You coulda' died!"

"Gawrsh, I wasn't thinking." Goofy frowned. "I thought he was gonna' get you, Sora."

"I…I'm sorry." Sora sighed. "I just…froze up. But it won't happen again. You nearly scared me to death."

"Hmph!" Donald frowned, eying Goofy angrily still. "This isn't over yet."

"But for now it is!" Sora frowned as she pointed and Ariel cried out in surprise. "A cave! And ink's coming from it…This has to be where Ursula went!"

"When the shark moved the ship, it must of crashed into the rock and caused it to be pushed away along with the boat…" Ariel frowned. "Let's go!"

"Right!" Sora said, quickly following her friend before slowing down a bit. "Hang on…Ariel, I think you should go back. It's dangerous and we have no idea what's going to happen-"

"No." Ariel looked down at the ground. "It's…It's my fault what happened to my dad…I can't…Just sit around…"

Sora, Donald and Goofy stared at each other for a second.

 _I…I still don't think she should come but…At the same time, I can sort of understand how she wants to fix her mistakes! After all, we all make mistakes!_

"Alright!" Sora nodded.

They could see other small and miserable looking creatures blink at them as they entered the cave.

"That's…What daddy looks like…" Ariel whispered.

"They must be all the others that crossed paths with Ursula…" Sora frowned, summoning her keyblade. "Let's get this over and done with! She's got to be stopped!"

The four of them swam into the ink-infested lair and a distant voice of Ursula's laughter echoed through the cave.

"She's definitely here then…" Sora muttered. "Be careful. She might have the heartless or even Maleficent nearby!"

"Now I'm afraid you're wrong at that." Ursula's amused voice caused everyone to turn to the squid woman in question who came out from the darkness of the cave, tenticles crawling from the top of the cave to spiral down till she was on the cave ground staring at them. "We may all work together for the same goal but that doesn't mean we are so weak that we can't take one measly keyblade brat and her two lackeys."

"Donald and Goofy are not lackeys!" Sora shouted angrily. "They're my friends!"

 _And what's she mean by 'we all'? There's others working with Maleficent?_

"Ha ha ha ha!" Ursula laughed. "You think you can defeat me? I have the all powerful trident!"

She lifted it up into the air and it glowed for a second.

"No!" Ariel shouted but it was too late.

Ink spread around the area and the next second, the cave was falling apart as Ursula got bigger and bigger, causing the cave to smash open as she towered over everyone. Ink spread around like a thick and dark cloud, giving them the disadvantage as they couldn't see nor breath very well.

"Yikes!" Goofy yelped, sticking his head in his shell.

"S-She's huge!" Sora gasped, seeing the huge squid figure of Ursula as Ariel froze near her.

"Come on!" Donald seemed to be the one encouraging them all as he ran forward, being the most unaffected as he too was a squid and Sora jolted herself.

 _That's right…! I won't freeze up again! It's time for her to pay! Maleficent may not come but she'd definitely been controlling the heartless here if they've been working together! Not to mention the fact Ursula's after a keyhole! She's the bad guy!_

"Heh." Ursula smirked. "I am the Queen of the Sea! All Sea Creatures Will Bow to ME! Flotsam! Jetsam! Let's show them what we can do!"

The next second, Ursula had Sora trapped and immobile, squirming to get out of the sea witch's hold but unable to move at all.

"Damn it!" Donald shouted and Sora glared, still struggling as she saw all her friends were in the same boat.

"Come on, bow to me!" Ursula cackled madly. "I'll take good care of you…Like the others!"

Sora glared as she remembered the miserable beings that had been turned into worms of some sort.

"Heck no!" Sora shouted. "I've still got to find my friends! And I've got to stop the evil you're planning! I won't let you win! SIMBA!"

There was a flash of light and then Simba was swimming towards her, face frowning as he slashed at Ursula's tentacle trapping Sora. He was holding his breath but he smiled at Sora as she was released.

"Thanks." Sora smiled and he disappeared quickly, running out of breath but nodding to her. "Now then…!"

Turning to Ursula who was casting her trident on Flotsam and Jetsam and hadn't noticed she'd been attacked (one of the disadvantages of being huge-you don't notice a 'small' wound), Sora quickly turned to her friends and released them, cutting at Ursula's tentacles trapping them too.

"Now…!" Sora grinned, nodding to Ariel, Donald and Goofy. "Attack!"

Ursula yelled in rage as Donald quickly cast a Blizzard at her face, just as Flotsam and Jetsam cornered Donald, their bodies enhanced with spikes on them and razor sharp teeth.

"We'll handle them!" Flounder shouted, coming suddenly and acting as a distraction to Flotsam and Jetsam who, in their new transformed state from the trident, seemed to have lost all logical thinking and didn't see Flounder as a distraction.

"Flounder!" Ariel shouted as Ursula continued to shout.

"Ariel, come on!" Sora shouted, smiling at Ariel. "If we take down Ursula, no doubt Flotsam and Jetsam will go back to normal too!"

Ariel blinked before nodding. "Right!"

 _This…Is going to be easy…! You're big…!You're bulky…! And you're predictable! Just like the huge shadow of myself I versed! Just like Cerberus!_

Let's just say Ursula had a very sore eye by the time Sora was done with her.

Later…

"I thank you once again." Triton smiled at them for the first time. "Not only have you saved my daughter and me but also the countless other me people and sea creatures Ursula had enslaved."

"It was nothing." Sora smiled, glad to see Triton back on the throne with his trident beside him. "We're just here to help."

Ariel nudged her father and King Triton coughed. "Y-Yes. I also must apologise. Ariel here has explained everything to me. I will show you the keyhole for you to lock."

Sora, Donald and Goofy grinned at each other.

"However, I must warn you." Triton frowned. "Disaster is going to be brought to the worlds sooner or later. You must prepare as your key is a very powerful weapon that can save the worlds."

"Don't worry." Sora nodded, smiling. "I will."

 _I promise._

Locking the keyhole was quick and easy and they once again got another gummi piece which probably led to another world.

 _One more closer to defeating Maleficent…She can't hide forever…!_

"Here Sora." Ariel smiled, handing her a document as they stood in the palace area where King Triton sat . "You said you wanted this, didn't you? I had daddy clean the smudges off with his trident. It should be readable now, even when you go _**back to your world."**_

 _This is part of Ansem's report…I can't believe we found it in Ursula's lair…It's proof that Ursula was working with Maleficent as Maleficent was said to have most of the reports…But luckily King Triton was able to clean it and make it water proof so we can read it when we go back to our world…_

Wait…

"I-WHAT?" Sora gasped. "How do you know?! That we come from another world?"

"Ursula told me…" Ariel looked down.

"I…I'm sorry…" Sora frowned, looking down as well. "We're..We're not allowed to speak about coming from another world…"

"That's okay." Ariel smiled. "You've apologised and besides, now that I know that you've been to other worlds-it _is_ possible."

Sora smiled. "That's true. I felt the same way until…well, things happened and I got split apart from my other friends. But we all dreamed of visiting other worlds together. And once we're all together again, I think we just might."

Ariel smiled, twirling around as her father rolled his eyes at her talking about going to other worlds.

"I can't stop you." Her father smiled. "Nor can I change your mind."

Ariel smiled again. "I'll find a way to go to other worlds-with my own power and without hurting anybody."

Sora grinned, slinging her keyblade over her shoulder. "That's the way to go."

"Speaking of going…" Donald said. "We have to go now."

"Come visit again." Ariel grabbed Sora's hand and Sora nodded.

"Of course!" Sora smiled. "We're friends, after all! We'll come back!"

But then Sora paused, turning to King Triton as Ariel quickly disappeared to no doubt collect something. "Um… The reason you said the keyblade brings destruction and chaos to worlds… is because of the heartless, right?"

King Triton sighed. "Queen Athena… Ariel's mother… was a keyblade wielder."

Sora froze in shock and King Triton looked off, as if in memory.

"But yes… I guess you could say it was because of the heartless." He sighed, looking truly his age. "She, being a keyblade wielder, had an adventure streak that could rival Ariel… But during a heartless attack on a human ship many years ago… I lost her."

Sora looked down, feeling her own heart clench at remembering the loss of her parents to a ship as well.

"I… am sorry I said that to you. I know most keyblade wielders go to protect the worlds but…" King Triton put a hand over his face and heaved a big sigh. "She was so bright and happy… and I lost her because she was a keyblade wielder… I suppose you could say the whole Sea nearly fell into disorder… because I was too busy grieving."

Sora smiled sadly. "But they wouldn't want us to grieve, would they?"

King Triton looked at her before giving her an equally sad smile. "No. Come back to visit sometime. Ariel would be happy."

Sora nodded and followed Donald and Goofy who had given her some space. She didn't tell them anything but she resolved to keep King Triton's story in her heart as a reminder. She was here to protect the worlds as much as to find her friends.

She would never waste other's sacrifices, especially now that Sora realised Ariel's mother had been a keyblade wielder.

On the gummi ship ride back to Traverse Town:

"My muscles…" Sora moaned on the ground in pain as Donald and Goofy sat in a heap behind her while Chip and Dale poked and prodded them to get up. "I swam too much…"

 _Urgh…My muscles…So sore… and hungry…_

Traverse Town:

"Hey Cloud!" Sora grinned as they walked through the First District door (after many potions to sooth her muscles). "Haven't seen you in a while!"

"…Hey…" he said, his voice muffled by his red cloak.

"Hey, why is your coat tattered?" Sora asked and Cloud stared at her. "What? It's not my fault you're strange and mysterious."

"Tactless as ever…." Donald muttered, turning to Goofy. "Are you sure she's wising up?"

"Hyuk!" Goofy smiled as Cloud shook his head.

"Because it is…" he muttered again and Sora frowned.

"That's not an answer-hey, Donald, let go!" Sora shouted as Donald grabbed her and started dragging her towards the inn.

"We've got stuff to do!" Donald shouted. "Like hand over the report, get the ship repaired, sleep and eat and get ready for the next world!"

Sora sighed but stopped struggling, turning to Goofy. "Hey, didn't you say something earlier about me participating in the Hercules Tournament alone or something?"

"Yeah! We're against it!" Donald shouted. "There's no way you're going in there alone when you attract so much trouble!"

"What?!" Sora frowned. "What do you mean?!"

"I mean!" Donald said impatiently. "There's no way you're entering alone! _We'l_ l be entering with you."

"Why do you want to enter the Coliseum competitions with me? Do you think I'm too weak to fight on my own?" Sora asked Donald and Goofy angrily.

"Gee, Sora. It's not that we think you're weak. It's that you're a valuable friend to us. We don't want you to get hurt!" Goofy explained.

Before Sora could retort, Donald nodded.

"He's right!" Donald frowned.

"Whenever we get hurt, you get hurt too. You get sad that we got hurt and couldn't stop it. It's the same for us. When you get hurt, so do we. So that's why we always are with you to help fight. All for one and one for all!"

Sor's eyes widened before a smile came onto her face. "…Thanks...And I'm sorry."

"Don't be."

"We're friends after all! An' friends look out for each other!"

"Great. Now…You guys mind walking through the door so I can get in too?" Yuffie asked them and the three of them quickly moved inside the inn door they had been blocking while having their conversation.

"Sora, Donald, Goofy. You're back." Aerith smiled as they entered the kitchen for some food before bed. "How was your-"

"You guys are back!" Cid grinned at them as he entered. "Great! I'm going to upgrade your ship systems! You'll be having the rest of the night off!"

"Here!" Donald shouted, giving him the gummi block before Cid took off. "It's another navigation gummi. Can you install it for us?"

"Sure!" he grinned.

…And Cid zipped off out the inn towards the gummi ship.

"What's up with Cid?" Sora frowned. "He's never this…energetic."

"Meh." Yuffie shrugged, helping herself to some food Aerith just put down. "Apparently he has created a new program and wants to put it on your ship."

"Oh…" Sora nodded before she (finally) remembered. "We found part of Ansem's report! Can you translate it Aerith?!"

Aerith nodded, putting it down as Leon walked in.

"Have you told them yet?" Leon sighed and Aerith shook her head so Leon spoke. "Apparently there have been universal kidnappings-just like with the boy called Ace. Something is definitely not right so be on your guard."

"Right." Sora nodded, clenching her fists.

 _Could Maleficent be behind this?_

"Sora." Leon said. "Are you coming?"

Sora's eyes widened.

 _That's right! Leon's going to help me fight better!_

* * *

 **Me:** What does everybody think? Was anybody surprised by Ariel's mother being a keyblade wielder?


	27. Training and Another World

**Me:** Can anyone guess what world we have this time? And Sora matures a little more!

* * *

Sora realised very quickly that training with Leon was _not_ going to be easy. As soon as they left, because there was a lack of heartless to practice on, she had to face _him_ instead. Of course, Sora wasn't complaining as she reckoned he was even better than Riku…Well, Riku _had_ defeated the heartless back in the third district quite easily…

She'd have to wait on that assumption.

"Focus." Leon frowned, his gunblade out. "In battle, nobody is going to wait for you to get your thoughts together."

"Sorry." Sora frowned, running forward with her keyblade in the air and slashing downwards with a shout.

Leon dodged her easily.

Glaring at him, she acted. Sora must've done something he didn't expect for he smiled when he barely dodged out of the way of her incoming keyblade being thrown at him.

"Good." Leon smiled, proud. "You're getting more creative."

Sora grinned, scratching the back of her head…

…Which left her as a vulnerable opponent when Leon ran towards her, his weapon raised again.

"Wha!" Sora yelped as she was thrown back a bit from the force.

Sticking her hand out to lessen her fall, she pushed off from the ground and landed properly on her feet, gasping as she stared at Leon.

"Don't think the fight is over when it's not." He reprimanded, frowning at her.

"And don't think you may be facing one opponent." Cloud's voice said behind her and Sora yelped, barely managing to block Cloud's attack as his sword came down swinging from behind her.

"Cloud!"

Before Sora could say anything, Aerith was heading towards them, scowling as she came closer. "What are you doing? That was really dangerous!"

Sora was surprised. Aerith (for the duration Sora had known her) was _never_ angry. The woman in question quickly came down through the cavern towards them, a tray of Barley Tea in her hands. Aerith put the Barley Tea aside as she scowled at the rather uncomfortable Cloud.

"Well?" Aerith frowned, folding her arms and waiting for an answer in the awkward silence.

"I asked him to help out. We have plenty of potions encase somebody gets hurt." Leon explained as Sora finally stood up and made fully sure she was all in one piece. "Maleficent isn't going to be fighting on her own and neither are other dangers Sora may face."

"Oh!" Sora nodded. "I get it! Encase the heartless or something tries to ambush me-I've got to make sure I'm not focused on only one opponent!"

"But still, Sora's just a kid-" Aerith frowned but Sora interrupted.

"No, I'm not!" Sora frowned, vanishing her keyblade and staring up at Aerith. "And besides, I've…I've got to protect the worlds and all my friends-which is basically everyone I met! I can't afford to play fight anymore! I've got to get stronger!"

There was a stunned silence before Leon smiled.

"Well said." Leon smiled.

Later…

After a lot of dodging and getting hit by Leon anyway, Leon halted the match/training/slaughter fest for yet another piece of advice.

Sora was breathing hard as she stood in her tense position, just encase Leon decided to do another surprise attack or distract her when those few times Cloud would come in instead.

She hadn't been able to do much except dodge and get hit by Leon and Cloud but she knew after a while, she'd definitely get the hang of fighting them and be able to fight back.

"You're putting too much weight into your attacks." Leon frowned. "Doing that throws you off balance."

"Oh…" Sora frowned, having not noticed that at all.

But then again, she _did_ find it difficult to parry Leon's attacks whenever she launched an attack at him or Cloud (who was once again silent and standing in the corner of the waterway).

"Hitting hard and quick is effective but you have to remember to distribute the weight of your keyblade." Leon explained before getting back into an attacking position.

Sora nodded, gripping her keyblade tightly before relaxing her grip slightly.

 _This will make it easier to swing my wrists around…_

Leon charged at her, nearly a blur as Sora jumped back a bit, not expecting Cloud to appear at the same time. She brought up her keyblade on instinct, blocking his attack while grunting at the force and trying not to topple over herself.

Something clicked in her mind and Sora grinned, using her wrist to swing the keyblade at Cloud to parry and counter his attack.

There was a grunt of pain and Cloud pulled back, shocked and even a little wary.

"She got you, Cloud!" Yuffie cheered from the sidelines (when had Yuffie gotten there anyway?). "You'd better be careful! Or you'll lose your awesome reputation!"

Cloud closed his eyes, taking a deep breath before he opened them once more. "Are you ready?"

"Yeah!" Sora grinned, keyblade in hand and still exhilarated from actually managing to hit him when back at the Coliseum fight, she had lost so easily and without a single hit.

"Focus Sora." Leon frowned again, coming towards her, gunblade raised.

"Right!" Sora nodded, grabbing the keyblade with both hands and rushing forward to meet Leon's attack as she watched Cloud out of the corner of her eye.

After the training…

Sora's muscles were aching and she felt like she might drop any second but she also felt accomplished. While she hadn't been able to defeat Cloud nor Leon, she had managed to hit them a couple of times and put them on their guard.

 _He he…I'm getting better!_

"Sora, have you thought of trying to attack with one hand instead of both?" Leon asked as they made their way back to the inn for some rest. "You'll be able to manoeuvre more."

Sora frowned. "Uh…Manoeuvring is movement, right?...See you Cloud! Thanks for the help!"

Leon sighed as Cloud broke away from them and headed to his room, nodding once to them in farewell. "Yes, it's movement."

"Well…" Sora frowned again. "I actually have always attacked with two hands…But I suppose I can try to attack with one hand…"

"No." Leon shook his head, his blue eyes piercing her own with a seriousness she didn't know he had. "You are going up against dangerous people. There's no time to be changing your attack patterns-not now. It's too dangerous."

Sora blinked before grinning. "Okay, okay. Then after we've defeated all the bad guys?"

Leon snorted at Sora's terminology. "Yeah. 'Bad guys' first."

Gummi Ship, next morning…

"Riku…He still hasn't come back to talk to me yet…" Sora frowned. "I guess he's still looking for Kairi too…Maybe at this next world…"

"Sora…" Donald frowned. "Remember, happy thoughts! You'll find your friends soon! Just like we'll find the king!"

"Yep, Hyuk!" Goofy smiled. "Donald's right! And I'm sure the king is looking for ya' pals too! Remember? I said that already!"

Sora blushed in embarrassment, grinning weakly at them. "Sorry, I forgot…"

 _I wonder if I'll ever remember important things like that…_

"Anyway, seat belts on." Donald shouted as everyone buckled up. "We're warping to the Coliseum."

"But I thought the tournament was tomorrow?" Sora frowned.

Chip and Dale jumped on her hair again (they seemed to find it amazingly soft and comfortable despite her spiky hair).

"It _is_ tomorrow." Donald nodded. "But the coordinates of the next planet also show how we can get there through a warp hole. And the warp hole is closest to the Coliseum."

"A warp-What?" Sora's mouth fell open.

 _I thought they were only in the console games Riku and I played!_

At the new world:

"Gawrsh Sora, you okay?" Goofy asked.

"Yeah…" Sora mumbled, dizzy. "That warp hole...I think it's more fun in the games Riku and I played…"

"Alright." Donald said, unbuckling. "Let's go."

The three of them headed out the cockpit and into the new world.

Teleporting to the ground, Sora stretched…

She felt weird.

"WHHAA!" Donald squawked out when he saw her…at the exact same time she yelped.

Donald looked like a mummified duck, wrapped in bandages as some of it trailed the floor behind him. Goofy was no better, having a bolt in his head and stitch markings all over his face and body as if he was some sort of monster that ran on electricity and had been patched up with crudely done knitting.

 _Are we…wearing Halloween costumes?_

As Sora finally got the chance to look at herself, she gasped. She was wearing black shorts now, red and black stockings, pointy black shoes and…was that something over her eye?

"Gawrsh Sora! You look kinda' scary!" Goofy laughed. "But ah…We all kinda' do. And so does this place."

They had landed in a circular park, with glowing lights with pumpkin heads as the lights. It was dark and the sky was a burgundy red which had a menacing sort of look to it.

Goofy was right.

It did seem kind of scary.

And Sora loved it.

"This is great!" Sora grinned. "This is even better than the Halloween parties we used to have back on my island! You said this was Halloween Town, right Donald?"

"Hmph. I did but…" Donald frowned, walking around and tripping over his own bandages. "Argh! I don't remember doing this! Why did we transform?!"

The three of them frowned, wondering why they _had_ changed.

"You know, everywhere looks scary." Goofy pointed out. "Maybe it's a part of the world and when we entered, we automatically changed to fit in?"

That actually seemed like a plausible answer.

"I guess…" Sora said before frowning as something lightly poked her bottom tooth.

Her hands trailed her face and she realised two things.

One, she had a mask that covered one of her eyes (which was why she thought she hadn't been able to see that well).

Two, she had fangs.

"Wow!" Sora gushed out excitedly. "I've got _fangs_! Guys, this is so cool!"

"Hmph." Donald said again, picking up the bandages that trailed behind him as his eyes glowed eerily. "Whatever you say. Let's just find the keyhole and leave already."

Sora poked her tongue out. "You're missing all the fun! Haven't you ever dressed up for Halloween and went trickle treating?!"

They had walked down the path now, entering through a gate into what seemed to be a plaza of some sort when Donald gasped.

"Sora! Your…What's on your back?!" Donald shouted and Sora craned her neck to peer over her shoulder, freezing at the sight.

"Well." She said. "I guess I really am a vampire."

Bat wings.

She had bat wings.

 _Wait till Riku and Kairi hear this! Gah! Where are you guys when I need you?! One of you better be on this world!_

"Please don't eat me." Donald deadpanned and Sora sniggered before they continued walking as Sora tried to flap her wings with minimum results.

 _Boo…I was hoping I could fly too…Oh well, I guess there has to be some restrictions…_

"Heartless!" Goofy shouted and the three of them got out their weapons upon seeing the familiar sign of the heartless (yellow glowing eyes and/or a weird heart emblem on their bodies with an 'X' in the middle).

The heartless that stood in front of them looked immensely like ghosts (which was kinda' fitting seeing as it _was_ Halloween Town).

Rushing forward, the three of them smashed their weapons into the heartless…Only for their attacks to go right through them.

 _No!_

Sora fumbled to get up before the heartless got her but upon standing and realising she still had her heart, she blinked at the heartless who _still_ hadn't reacted. It was as if…

They were ghosts.

 _Ghost heartless? Maybe ones we defeated? But…_

"Why aren't they doing anything?" Sora frowned, tilting her head in confusion and studying them (these ghost heartless had one of their eyes falling out and attached by a zig-zagged string).

"Who cares?" Donald huffed as he and Goofy got up. "Why don't we just look for the keyhole already?"

"True!" Sora smiled, walking passed them. "We can even search for Riku, Kairi and the King in peace. We don't want to waste an opportunity after all…And maybe if we finish everything, we can go trickle treating afterwards…"

"SORA!"

"Okay, okay…" Sora grinned, her teeth poking out. "We'll just find the keyhole…How about we go-"

"And now…!" a guy suddenly said from near them.

They jumped, having thought they had been alone in the plaza when the guy spoke.

He was weirdly dressed, with a black costume and a face with way to much make up. He was smiling…Or was that the make up? Either way, he _did_ look scary and Sora privately gave him points for his awesome appearance.

And then she saw he had a face on the back of his head and her smile widened.

 _This is the most epic Halloween place ever!_

The man was standing next to a beheading device, not at all distressed with the heartless floating around near him doing nothing at all as he continued speaking. "We present the king of Halloween-the king of horrors…Jack Skellington!"

Sora turned, mouth still set into a grin as she heard bubbling coming from somewhere. The man with two faces pointed towards the middle of the plaza, where the source of the bubbling came from a fountain filled with green liquid that looked like acid.

But that wasn't the best part. A huge and menacing skeleton came out of the green liquid, seeming perfectly fine and uninjured as he grinned, arms raised as if to scare somebody.

The heartless finally moved, but it was a robotic movement and not at all natural like all those other times Sora had fought them. The ghost heartless, as one collective, moved out of the way for the skeleton to get through, making it look like some sort of act they were pulling off.

"Wow…!" Sora gasped at the same time with Donald and Goofy, running forward to the skeleton despite Donald's protests that they were performing. "That was cool! How'd you get the heartless to obey you?!"

"Thank you! Thank you!" the skeleton (did two faced man called him Jack or something?) smiled, bowing to her before standing straight and giving her a full view of his skull face and empty eye sockets (though he had eyelids). "The heartless recently came to town and the doctor's been working on getting them to dance for us!"

"Dance?" Sora frowned, folding her arms in thought as her face twitched at imagining heartless holding hands and dancing in a circle or something utterly more ridiculous. "Sure…But wouldn't they try and steal your heart first?"

Jack grinned. "That's what so amazing about these ones! They don't do anything at all and the doctor's already come up with something to get them to move but…I still don't think their movements are 'normal' enough…hmm…"

Sora stared at the heartless that were still just floating around, not even interested in attacking her. It seemed a wish come true.

"So the heartless…Aren't doing anything…?" Sora smiled slowly, turning to Donald and Goofy with a grin. "So…After we've done everything…Can we still go trickle-treating?!"

"SORA!"

A few minutes later…

"You're going to help them?" Donald frowned, tapping his foot on the ground. "Sora, we really should be-"

"Relax. Let me explain first." Sora said as she walked over to the bookshelf in the doctor's lab. "The heartless aren't doing anything right? And if they manage to create a heart that can control the heartless, they'll never attack people again!"

"I…I see your point…."Donald nodded, his eerily blue eyes giving him a menacing look despite looking thoughtful.

"Come on, Donald!" Goofy grinned, his spirally eyes giving him an insane look instead. "This could really help the king!"

 _I wonder what my eye looks like…Can't believe I can't remove the pumpkin from my other eye…Wait, now's not the time! I've got to convince Donald to stay and help so I can go trickle-treating-I mean, watch the heartless dance….Somehow, I think I'll just go with Goofy's plan. After all, making sure the heartless don't attack anybody would be the best!_

"Yeah!" Sora nodded, turning back to Jack and the doctor who were still trying to find the key to unlock the chest. "Hey, I can unlock it if you want…"

Walking to where Jack put it on the metal bed, she summoned her keyblade and a beam shot out of it and right towards the chest's keyhole, opening the chest with a 'clink'.

"Wow." Jack grinned, opening the chest with his bony hands. "Your costume is more than it seems, Sora! Do you want to join in on the Halloween festival?"

Before Donald could interrupt, Sora was already agreeing, inwardly cheering.

 _I haven't had Halloween in ages…_

Flashback:

" _Riku, are you done yet?!" Sora shouted, bouncing on her feet as she impatiently waited outside Riku's door. "Come oooooooooooon! If we don't hurry, we'll miss out on all the candy."_

 _Loud crashing was heard inside his room and judging from Riku's cursing, he had just tripped over something._

 _Whoops…_

 _Maybe she shouldn't have dumped all her sleepover stuff in his room…_

 _Riku finally emerged from his (rather messy, if you asked Sora) room, dressed in a dark cloak with bat wings behind his back and…_

 _Sora burst out laughing._

… _and with kitten ears._

" _Shut up Sora." Riku frowned, a blush covering his face as he looked away. "If you hadn't broken the horns…"_

 _Sora grinned, grabbing his arm and dragging him along as they said goodbye to his parents before leaving the house to go find Kairi._

" _Come on…" Sora tried to hold in her laughter (possibly cracking a rib or two in the effort). "I think…it…really suits you…BWA HAHAHAHAHA!"_

 _Sora doubled over laughing in her own costume, dressed as a gigantic shark (the fishermen always used to tell tales about how dangerous sharks were and they became one of the horror monsters to the kids and young teens of Destiny Islands._

" _Hey Sora!" Kairi grinned at them as he ran towards them. "Hey Ri…-BWA HAHAHAHAHA!"_

 _Riku twitched again as Kairi doubled over laughing with Sora at seeing him and he folded his arms, frowning at them._

 _When Sora and Kairi finally regained themselves, they had a private conversation through looks that one of them would definitely sneak a photo of Riku without him noticing and keep it for laughs (and possibly blackmail)._

End Flashback

"Well, let's see if this will work now!" the professor moved his wheelchair to the machine, pulling the lever.

Sparks started coming from the machine above them and travelling down to the point aiming at the heart on the metal table.

Sora could feel her excitement grow.

 _This…With this, we'll definitely be able to stop the heartless!_

Behind her, she didn't notice Donald and Goofy laughing quietly as they saw her wings flutter up and down in her excitement.

Then there was a bang and lots of smoke.

"GAH!" Sora shouted, quickly opening the door to get rid of the smoke.

"It failed!" the professor shouted angrily. "Why…?"

Coming back inside, Sora coughed a little as she waved the smoke from in front of her face while Donald and Goofy opened the windows. Jack was frowning, seemingly not affected by the smoke as he looked at the recipe book.

"Hmm…I don't get it. We followed all the instructions to make a heart…" Jack muttered just as the professor gasped.

"Of course! We need memory!" the professor shouted, clicking his fingers and turning to Jack. "Go fetch me Sally's memories!"

Sora sweat dropped, looking at Donald and Goofy for confirmation.

"D-Did he really just…?"

 _Ask to fetch somebody's memory…? How the heck do you do that?_

"Yep." Donald nodded, shaking his head. "I'm pretty sure all the worlds we've been to aren't meant to be as weird as they are…"

"You guys coming?!" Jack smiled at them and Sora nodded just as Pluto walked into the lab.

"Huh? Pluto?!" Donald frowned, tapping his foot on the ground as he glared at the dog that was wagging his tail and sniffing around. "Why are you out of the ship again?!"

"Ya' know, I bet he's looking for Dalmatian puppies!" Goofy announced, laughing. "Somehow he's always managed to find them and bring them back to the ship."

"You know, I never noticed that before…" Sora mumbled, hitting herself for not wandering why Pluto managed to find puppies while heartless were around and the worlds they went to were very big. "It just doesn't seem realist…"

Sora stopped speaking as Pluto pulled out a sheet of paper sticking out of the bookshelf.

"Pluto!" Donald croaked. "Put that back!"

"No, no." the professor waved a hand dismissingly. "He can keep it. I found it a week or two ago. It's nothing important."

"Roaf!" Pluto barked happily as he came up to them with the sheet in his mouth.

"Wait a minute…" Sora mumbled, taking a closer look at the sheet with her uncovered eye. "That's…! One of the pages from Merlin's book!"

The trio gasped in amazement at Pluto's seemingly amazing finding abilities. The dog only tilted his head curiously.

 _Come to think of it, I remember waking up to Pluto near me the day I lost my island and arrived in Traverse Town. Donald and Goofy had obviously been looking for me that day…Heh…If they'd only followed Pluto…What an amazing doggy…_

"Guys, come on!" Jack's voice outside the door reminded them they still had a mysterious 'Sally' to find (and Sora was sure the doctor said he'd created her. Was she a robot or something?).

They quickly walked out the door, descending the steps and following Jack as he walked through the plaza…

And then the heartless appeared.

"WHAT?!" Sora shouted, jumping quickly to avoid the surprise attack.

 _It's a good thing Leon and Cloud prepared me for this type of thing…! If I hadn't been training for surprise attacks, I would have lost my heart by now!_

Donald and Goofy, it seemed, were also somewhat experienced in surprised attacks because as soon as the heartless came, Goofy jumped back and rammed right into Donald, falling on top of him and causing Donald to drop his staff where it promptly released bolts of thunder down on the heartless by mistake.

…Or maybe they were just extremely lucky…

 _Goofy_ _ **did**_ _say they fell down a lot…But I'm just glad they're okay!_

The ghost heartless, flying through the air and flashing beams of light at them every few seconds, were trickier than Sora had thought. Vanishing quickly, if Sora put too much power into her attacks, she'd fall forward onto the ground just as the ghost heartless disappeared.

 _Now I'm more thankful than ever for Leon's training…_

"JACK!" the two faced man shouted as he ran panicked towards them, his second face (which was sad) yelling at them. "The heartless! They're out of control!"

""Mayor!" Jack shouted, quickly running towards the mayor (he had long legs so it took him a lot less than it took Sora, Donald and Goofy).

With a huge swipe of his hands, the two mummified heartless (that looked like they had razor sharp claws as well) were gone and the mayor breathed a sigh of relief.

…at least until around two dozen more heartless appeared in the square.

"There's so many!" Sora shouted, backing up against Donald and Goofy as Jack quickly stood in front of the mayor. "Jack, get the mayor to the doctor's! We'll hold them off here!"

"Alright!" Jack nodded, picking up the mayor and literally running just as fast back to the lab room.

"Sora…" Donald frowned. "What should we do?"

"Gawrsh, this looks bad." Goofy said, raising his shield above his face. "We'd better be careful!"

" _ **You've been facing people your own age, with similar fighting styles and familiar attacks." Leon stated. "In a real battle, especially with the heartless, don't always charge into a battle. If dodging will be better, dodge. If fleeing would be better, flee."**_

The heartless ran towards them, claws out and ghosts vanishing to reappear dangerously close.

 _ **Sora elaborated. "If people are in danger, I won't ever flee! I'll fight no matter what!"**_

 _ **Just like with Hercules and Cloud!**_

 _Just like with Jack and the mayor!_

"We have to protect Jack and the mayor!" Sora shouted, summoning her keyblade and attacking the heartless rushing towards the two Halloween residents in question. "Come on!"

"Right!" Donald shouted, bringing his staff up. "Thunder!"

More bolts came down, destroying the first of the heartless that tried to stop Sora's running.

 _I have no idea what caused them to suddenly act up but…_

Sora swung her keyblade carefully, going in a graceful sweep around her as she went like a whirlwind and destroyed the heartless surrounding her.

 _I won't let them hurt people!_

The next second, more heartless had surrounded her and Sora gritted her teeth, keyblade raised as she stood at the entrance to the stairs leading to the lab. She had to protect them.

And then the heartless were being destroyed by somebody's dagger, cutting through them like minced fish.

* * *

 **Me:** Who can guess who this is?! This is a character from _somewhere_ but I won't say where!


	28. Disgusting Talking Bag

**Me:** We're on to the next chapter!

* * *

Sora stood stunned for a second as she saw the man (who was in his late thirties, early forties) slice through the heartless without sweating a beat. He seemed to know where each one was, what it was planning and how it was going to attack. His dagger, though small, twirled and danced through his hands at a furious speed as heartless after heartless fell to his hands.

His eyes were dark and focused as he kept the heartless scattered and easy pickings for Sora, Donald and Goofy who were no longer being converged upon by the huge heartless mass. His dark green hair curled down to just before his shoulders and his darker skin colour (though Sora still thought it could be considered partly white) almost seemed to hide him from view (though Sora knew it was only because he was so fast that she was having trouble watching him).

He wore a red coat that went down to his knees, black pants and a greyish brown cloak which fluttered behind him as he artfully swept through the heartless. Though the most noticeable about his appearance was the jagged scar on his face as if it already emphasized he was a fighter.

And then Sora kicked herself as she remembered she was still in a battle. Joining the man in fighting, Sora was surprised by how quickly the heartless were defeated.

"Wow! That was amazing!" Jack smiled at them as he came towards them. "Where do you come from? I haven't seen you here before."

The mystery man looked away, expression blank as he ignored the question and walked off.

"Weird." Donald said as the four of them regrouped.

"Yeah but he was amazing…" Sora was still amazed.

 _Hmm…I wonder who would win if he fought against Leon or Cloud? Somehow I have the feeling that Riku wouldn't even stand a chance…and neither would I…_

"Well, enough about him." Jack smiled. "We've got a Halloween to prepare for! Let's go find Sally and get her memories!"

Donald, Goofy and Sora smiled at one another.

"Right!"

The three of them walked through the place and Sora kept her eye out for any signs of her friends, frowning when she didn't see them.

"What's wrong, Sora?" Jack asked and Sora smiled weakly at him.

"I'm actually looking for my friends." Sora explained. "I was wondering if they were here on this wo-Omph!"

Donald elbowed her and Sora laughed awkwardly as Jack waited for her to continue.

 _Oh…the world orders…not supposed to tell people or hint that we're not from this world…_

"Well, I was wondering…Has anybody called Riku or Kairi appeared here?" Sora asked, turning back to Jack.

"Hmm…" Jack frowned before shaking his head. "I'm afraid not. But I'll let you know if they do come here."

"Thanks Jack." Sora smiled.

Five minutes later…

 _I wonder how long it's been…_

They walked through the graveyard, weapons out as Zero hid behind them as if sensing the danger.

The four of them knew that the heartless were there.

 _How long has it been since I've come to one of these places…?_

Jack had led them to a graveyard, complete with moving tombstones and even a few white blobs darting through the area that may have even been ghosts. There was a fence to Sora's left and over it she could see a hill with more gravestones. The hill even had a spiralling end attached to it. Further on was yet another fence leading somewhere Sora couldn't see.

But Sora had more important things to think about because the heartless were upon them again.

The fight was long and brutal. The mummified heartless were quick to slash at them with their long claws and the ghost heartless were quick to disappear whenever one of the group got too close, only to reappear near the four of them and push them out of the safety of their group.

"Keep together!" Jack shouted as they all stood back to back.

 _These heartless…! They're really strong! But how to I fight them…? I can't exactly fight like them…Wait…_

Sora grinned, raising her keyblade in the air as she opened her mouth. "SIMBA! I summon you!"

 _But I know somebody who can!_

Simba was quick to make an entrance; claws extended as he launched himself at the mummified heartless and gave the group a chance to focus on one heartless at a time. He roared ferociously as heartless vanished with one swipe of his claws.

Sora was quick to attack the ghost heartless, surprising them by shooting at them with fire instead of coming in close range like before.

 _If you vanish when I get close, I'll just have to switch to long-range attacks!_

Sora was a blur (or at least she thought she was moving quickly), attacking the heartless while any injuries she sustained were healed quickly by Donald who was shooting out spells like there was no tomorrow.

Jack was spinning around, his long bony arms and legs creating the perfect weapon to keep any mummified heartless at bay that got passed Simba's clutches.

The heartless never stood a chance with the group's new found teamwork.

"Ha…" Sora breathed heavily as she leaned against one of the tombstones. "Man, the heartless…are much stronger here…"

 _That or having one deadly long range and one deadly close range heartless makes it difficult to exploit any weaknesses or fight them easily…_

"Zero, can you find Sally?" Jack asked and as Zero (he was a dog ghost and had a glowing blue nose) zoomed behind one of the tombstones near Sora, a woman's voice gasped.

A lady with brown hair and stitch markings over her pale blue skin came out, wearing a strange looking dress. "Are they all gone, Jack?"

"Yep!" Jack grinned. "There's nothing to worry about, Sally!"

Sally came closer, visibly relieved. "That's good. Did you need something?"

"Yep!" Jack grinned again as Donald, Goofy and Simba came closer. "We're looking for some memories to make the heartless dance!"

"Oh…" Sally looked worried as she handed Jack a bare branch reluctantly. "You mean these?"

She was silent as she handed them over and Sora frowned at Donald and Goofy, who seemed equally as perplexed.

 _A branch…the memory is a branch…?_

"Jack…! Don't do this, please!" Sally said suddenly, her face betraying her anxiety. "I have a really bad feeling about this!"

Jack seemed unbothered by Sally's concerns and he turned away. "Nonsense! When we create the heart, we'll definitely be able to make the heartless dance for us! Come on everyone!"

Jack started walking and Sora shrugged, figuring if things _did_ go wrong, they'd just defeat all the heartless.

 _Besides, if there's a chance to stop the heartless, I'll take it!_

"See you Sora." Simba smiled at her and Sora jumped, nearly having forgotten Simba didn't stay for long.

"See ya' Simba!" Goofy grinned. "Thanks so much for helping out again! You're a real pal!"

Simba seemed surprised before he smiled back. "You three are as well! I'm glad I got to meet you all!"

"Hey, we're not done yet!" Donald smiled. "No goodbyes yet!"

"That's right!" Sora grinned. "Our journey's still not over yet!"

Simba nodded, smiling just as he disappeared in a flash of white.

"Come on." Sora smiled to her friends. "Let's go catch up with Jack. We've got a heart to create and attend to."

After looking back for a second, Sally finally joined them and they all caught up to Jack who was halfway towards the lab already.

"Roaf!" Zero barked suddenly as he spun around his master and Jack (probably would have rolled his eyes if he had any) smiled before pulling…off one of his bones.

"Alright boy! Fetch!" Jack threw it and Zero darted off through the graveyard while Sora, Donald and Goofy shared a look.

"That's…one way to play fetch…" Sora sweat dropped.

"Well…I suppose Halloween Town is as 'normal' as all the other places we've been to." Donald sweat dropped. "Wak…Come to think of it…I _CAN"T_ think of any places that were normal."

"Hmm…You may be right…" Sora nodded, thinking on everything she'd experienced and everyone she'd met on her journey. "But still, I absolutely love the wor-OMPH!"

Donald elbowed her again as Jack held the gate open for them to enter the town square again. "Sora, don't speak of worlds!"

Sora grinned sheepishly. "Sorry…"

Just then Zero flew up to her and dropped the bone in her hand, barking happily.

Sora grinned, leaning back and throwing the bone as far as she could.

"Oh, nice throw." Sally smiled as she came up beside Sora.

Lab…

"This is it…!" the doctor smiled as he scratched his brain…literally-he took off his head and scratched his brain (good thing Kairi wasn't here-he usually got queasy at sights like that-she and Riku were always daring each other on the latest scary movie so Sora wasn't really affected). "We've finally completed the heart…!"

"Hehehe!" a small and high pitched kid's voice laughed, just as something ran in front of the doctor's wheelchair, causing him to fall straight on his face and for the beating heart to fly through the air.

"Ah! The heart!" Sora shouted, running to get it but running at the same time as Donald and Goofy and resulting in the three of them crashing into each other. "Omph!"

A kid wearing a small demon outfit grabbed the heart and scampered off with another small kid wearing a witch's outfit. Sora looked up, just managing to get a view of a third kid wearing a jail outfit or something (Sora wasn't sure) running out the door.

"Give it back!" the doctor shouted and Sora was up instantly, following after Jack.

 _That could be the answer to stopping the heartless! We can't let it be stolen!_

They ran back into the plaza and Sora frowned when she couldn't see the kids, just as Jack shouted for Zero the dog again.

"After them!" Jack ordered quickly.

 _He must really care about this Halloween thing…_

Jack seemed to know the kids. They were called Lock, Shock and Barrel and apparently caused a lot of trouble of Halloween Town on a regular basis.

Following the dog caused them to go back to the Graveyard but it seemed the kids had jumped the fence.

"We can't get through!" Sora frowned, looking around for any way to climb the fence without being skewered.

"Not to worry, Sora!" Jack grinned…as he literally jumped right over the fence. "I'm tall enough. Grab my hand."

 _Great! We can save time like this!_

Getting to the top of the fence quickly, Sora carefully avoided the spikes at the fence top and jumped down to the other side, narrowly avoiding colliding with Donald and Goofy who had jumped a second before her and landed in the same spot, crashing into a heap.

"You guys okay….?" Sora sweat dropped.

 _How often do they fall anyway…?_

"We're fine…There's the brats!" Donald shouted, pointing to the kids in the walking bathtub who were currently walking across the curling part of the hill into the third fenced area.

And then they saw the same mysterious man who had helped them earlier being attacked by the heartless.

 _WHAT?!_

"Quick!" Sora shouted as the man fell down to his knees, wincing in pain. "He's hurt!"

The mummified heartless launched its claws at the man's chest, as if to take his heart but Sora quickly deflected the blow, parrying and countering the attack with one of her own. A heart flew from the spot she had defeated the heartless and vanished into the air.

"Are you okay?" Sora asked as the man who stood unsteadily on his feet.

Sora helped him up, putting a hand on his shoulder to steady him as he walked to one of the pumpkins to sit on and she looked at Donald and Goofy unsurely as the man sat in silence before Jack broke it.

"You know, I really haven't seen you around here before." Jack nodded. "Where do you come from anyway?"

The man closed his eyes for a second before glaring at the ground. "My home is lost to the darkness. I come from nowhere now."

Sora's eyes widened and she stared at Donald and Goofy before back to the man, who winced again as if in pain.

"Cure!" Donald muttered, a green glow surrounding the man and healing him.

"Thanks." He opened one eye and nodded to Donald before getting up. "My name is Doom. Fitting, I suppose. If it isn't _them_ causing destruction, it's darkness itself. Here-I have no use of it anyway."

The man handed Sora an orange glowing gem and this was something Sora was sure was actually a summoning gem.

"Thanks mister!" Sora grinned putting it away before looking at him. "My name's Sora, this is Donald, Goofy and Ja…well, Jack's trying to get the hill to create a path but anyway…"

Sora paused as she turned her head back away from Jack (who was indeed trying to get the hill to uncurl and create a path to get over the second fence (because it was too tall for him to climb over) and towards Doom, frowning as she realised something.

He seemed defeated and almost like he was ready to give into despair, his eyes dark and sorrowful. He got up to leave and was a few steps away before Sora spoke.

"Hey mister!" Sora said, making Doom pause. "Don't give up yet! Me and my friends are going to protect the worlds and restore the ones that were taken! You're world isn't gone yet! I promise!"

The man snorted. "Of course. Very well then…Sora, was it? I won't 'give up' as you put it."

Doom left after that and Sora clenched the fire glow gem Doom had given her as silence descended upon the trio while Jack continued to try and get the hill to work.

She would protect the worlds.

For this mysterious man who seemed on the brink of complete despair.

For everyone else who had lost their homes.

For all her friends. From all the worlds.

"Guys, it's working!" Jack said, waving them over to the hill that finally uncurled itself and created a narrow path all the way over the tall fence.

 _Balancing at its finest…Here goes!_

Oogie Boogie's Manor:

"I knew Oogie Boogie was behind this…" Jack muttered as they walked on the planks towards the entrance of the manor. "We should be careful. He's always causing a lot of trouble."

 _But what's he want with the heart the doctor created? Maybe he just likes to cause trouble?_

Sora frowned as they entered the manor doors (after bashing up more heartless-they were getting easier to defeat the more Sora fought them), and saw one of the three kids through the created heart down a hole.

"No!" Jack shouted, just as the kids turned around and started to run.

"Don't let them escape!" Sora shouted, quickly launching herself at the closest one…and accidently squishing her and knocking her out cold.

 _Whoops…_

The other two weren't that hard to beat but what was frustrating for Sora was that Donald and Goofy kept lightly teasing her about what she'd just done.

"I-It was an accident!" Sora blushed as Donald cast a cure on the girl and she awoke-ready to talk with her other mischievous friends.

"He ordered us!" the girl shouted instantly, her voice high pitched like before. "Oogie Boogie ordered us to!"

"Why?" Jack folded his arms. "What's he want with a heart Shock?"

"To control the heartless!" one of the boys shouted even though Jack directed the question at the girl.

"Yeah!" Shock nodded, her hat coming off. "He's the one who brought the heartless to Halloween Town! But they wouldn't work or act!"

"So Oogie's looking to control them through the heart we created…" Jack muttered, not noticing Sora had froze along with Donald and Goofy. "Guys?"

"He's…in league with Maleficent!" Sora shouted, keyblade out. "I thought it was strange how the heartless acted up! We can't let him use the heartless! We have to defeat him quickly!"

 _I can't believe we got sidetracked by this! We should have searched for the keyhole first and then helped created the heart! We have to hurry!_

"Yeah!" Donald nodded, his staff in his hands. "We've got to stop him!"

"Well, I'm glad you guys are all fired up!" Jack smiled as Goofy nodded. "Let's go find Oogie Boogie!"

Two minutes later, after a bit of prodding to the kids, the four of them stood outside the green door-the entrance to Oogie Boogie's lair.

They opened the doors.

"Haha! So you've arrived!" Boogie smirked at them.

He was a grey bag, with black stitching for eyes and a mouth. He had no fingers and no toes and seemed…stupid.

But that was just by looking at him.

Sometimes first impressions weren't always accurate.

"Give us back the heart!" Jack shouted and the four of them ran forward as Oogie laughed.

"You want it? Then come and get it!"

He ate the heart.

He ate it.

 _Damn it! Now we'll never be able to see if that would've worked against the heartless!_

"And now!" Oogie Boogie grinned. "Heartless, I command you! Come!"

There was an awkward silence before only two heartless appeared.

But no more did.

 _So this is why he wanted to use the heart…The heartless don't even listen to him in the first place…And even with the heart, they still don't bother…He's too stupid…_

"Nobody dares disrespect me!" Oogie Boogie shouted, slamming his fists on the ground. "NOBOD-OMPH!"

Everyone turned to stare at Sora and she shrugged. "What? He wasn't going to give us the heart and he couldn't control the heartless so that's a good thing! Besides, we need the heart."

Sora had thrown her keyblade straight at Oogie Boogie, who had toppled over and was groaning on the ground.

And then the heartless pounced.

Sora tensed but it wasn't even at her or her friends that the heartless attacked.

They attacked Oogie Boogie.

 _Just like Clayton…The darkness consumes people eventually…_

"ARRGHHH!" Boogie shouted, destroying the heartless with his arms but ultimately having been attacked by them and suffered damage.

He was a bag and one of the heartless had caused a rip in his side.

Nothing normal came out.

Instead, bugs of all kinds came out.

Sora was promptly sick.

"Sora!" Donald shouted as Sora dry heaved on the ground, her stomach protesting heavily with the sight of all the bugs coming out of him.

 _Just like one of those horror movies…Urgh…Don't think about it…Damn it…_

"Gawrsh, are you okay?" Goofy asked, putting a hand on Sora's back as she finally finished and accepted the potion off Donald, still queasy.

The potion helped with the nausea a bit but Sora still squirmed a bit when she looked at all the bugs that had come out of Oogie Boogie.

 _That…was revolting…_

"I'm fine…" Sora mumbled and Jack sighed as he picked up the heart.

"It seems it was a fail then…" Jack mumbled. "I guess we'll never get the heartless to dance…"

And then the mansion started to shake.

"WHHAA!" Donald croaked. "What's going on?!"

"Quickly!" Jiminy's voice came from Goofy's shoulder. "I think the building's going to collapse! I've seen buildings collapse before in other places and this has the same feel to it! We have to leave!"

Sora didn't think twice, knowing that Jiminy never spoke during their travels unless it was absolutely necessary. Running outside, Sora nearly fell as the manor literally began to move as if it had a will of its own.

The bridge to the cliff was starting to collapse and the four of them ran as fast as they could.

 _Nearly there! Nearly there! –NO!_

Sor's foot met no resistance and she fell downwards, her only comfort being that Donald, Goofy and Jack had made it to the cliff before the bridge collapsed.

"Oph."

Sora looked up at the person who had grabbed her hand, eyes widening when she saw Doom pulling her up to safety. "T-Thanks…"

"Sora! You okay?" Donald asked, casting a cure for safety measures anyway even as she nodded.

"You should be more careful." Doom smiled wryly. "If you're going to 'restore' my home."

"I…I will." Sora frowned, before looking back at the mansion as Goofy gasped.

"…It seems your enemy has some tricks of his own." Doom muttered, pulling out his blade.

Oogie Boogie had fused with his manor.

Sora groaned. "Can't I get any rest from a nightmare like you?"

Because Sora definitely found something she didn't want to look at ever again.

And that was Oogie Boogie because of the horrible images he'd bring up about bugs bursting out of him.

"Look!" Donald shouted, pointing to purple globs attacked to parts of Oogie-manor thing/it/person. "He's using the power of darkness!"

"Then we should destroy them first." Doom said as he narrowed his eyes. "Get rid of the source and you've destroyed him."

"Then let's smash them…And quickly" Sora announced, still feeling queasy and just wanting to leave and try to never remember Oogie Boogie and his mansion of horror.

After a very painful experience of destroying all the dark globs thanks to Donald using his mummy wrappings as ropes to swing from spot to spot and destroy the trickier placed ones:

Oogie was defeated.

Sora sat down in relief as the ground was now covered in what was left of Oogie's manor. It had fallen apart after he had been defeated and Sora sighed as she looked everything over with a critical eye.

"This…is a much better scenery…" Sora mumbled and Jack put a hand on her shoulder.

"We should go back soon." Jack said. "I'm sure the doctor will have something for you to make you feel better."

Sora nodded, getting up to leave when her keyblade glowed.

"Sora, look!" Goofy exclaimed, pointing to the ground behind her.

Turning around, Sora gasped in amazement when she saw the keyhole on the ground. Aiming her keyblade at it, she gave a small laugh as the keyhole locked. Another navigation gummi fell out, and Donald picked it up, smiling.

One world closer to the king.

"Let's head back to Traverse Town." Donald nodded. "We'll get some rest and go to the Hercules Tournament first thing tomorrow. And straight after it's to the next world."

Luckily Jack had already been walking just ahead of them when they discussed their next plans.

"You three are obviously more than you seem." Doom looked them over, eyes staying on the keyblade for a second. "Very well. Good luck on your travels. And goodbye."

Unluckily, they had forgotten Doom was near them but he didn't seem to mind their talk. In fact, considering he was from another world, he probably suspected Sora, Donald and Goofy were as well.

"Oh well…Let's catch up to Jack." Sora shrugged, ignoring the feeling to tell Donald off for letting slip about the worlds when he was the one who was always telling her off.

After they'd made it back to the lab, Sally seemed to have known what happened just by looking at Jack's face. Yet thankfully, she did not seem angry at him nor critical of him. She just seemed sympathetic.

"Don't worry Jack." Sally grabbed Jack's hands, smiling softly at him. "We've still got time to do Halloween. And this time, we'll do it together."

Jack nodded, giving a small smile and Sora grinned at her friends. "I think it's time to go."

Except, unlike a lot of the other times, Sora remembered something she'd wanted to do this time.

"Trickle-treat-"

"NO!" Donald shouted, pushing her along. "I'll get you candy at Traverse Town! But we're leaving! We need to go!"

 _Stupid Donald…Doesn't know the sport of eating the candy you collect…_

Traverse Town:

"We've found out what the report says." Aerith came up to them once they entered the first district, as if she had been waiting. "Here, you should all read it."

Sora frowned and grabbed the paper, reading it carefully.

 _ **I have created a machine that generates heartless but there seems to be no difference between the natural heartless and the artificially made ones. For experiments sake, I've marked the machine-created heartless with an emblem on them.**_

 _ **The normal heartless…could they be from darkness itself? The darkness in a person's heart? But what is darkness anyway? I, as a researcher, must find out. I will throw myself into darkness for the answers.**_

Sora frowned as she looked up.

Ansem was meant to be a really wise person from Aerith's home planet, Hollow Bastian but…he sounded…off…in his reports.

"So…You think Maleficent is using Ansem's machine to create loads of heartless and control them?" Sora frowned. "Ansem threw himself into the darkness…People only ever lose their hearts in it…You think he's lost his…?"

"Most likely." Aerith frowned. "It just makes collecting the rest of the report much more important. If we can't speak to him directly, all his knowledge would be in only those reports…"

Sora nodded before looking up with a small smile. "We defeated another one of Maleficent allies! And we got another navigation gummi!"

"And I think we're getting close!" Donald nodded. "I just know it!"

 _Riku, Kairi…Soon the worlds will be restored and…If I haven't found you (again in your case Riku) by then, I'll definitely make sure we're back on the islands together when we stop Maleficent!_

* * *

 **Me:** So, can anyone guess where 'Doom' is from?


	29. Hercules Tournament

**Me:** I'm so sorry for the long delay (though it's only three days)! It completely slipped my mind as I've been busy recently.

 **Sora:** Tell them who this Doom character is!

 **Me:** I'm actually surprised nobody knows who he is... I mean he's from a really famous-

 **Kairi:** Just tell them already!

 **Me:** **Deltora Quest: Doom is leader of the resistance**

 **Sora:** However, in this story he obviously lost his world to the heartless.

 **Me:** I was actually thinking of entering this as a possible extra world for KHII but if nobody knows... Oh well.

 **Kairi:** You tried!

* * *

Sora huffed, her breath coming out in short gasps.

Sweat trickled down her face as she stood off squaring against Cloud (who had somehow become some sort of joint-trainer with Leon since the first time he'd joined in her training session). The two of them were in the water way once more and Sora was struggling to win against Cloud (Leon was busy doing something else).

The only reasons she knew she might have had a chance to win was because Cloud was also breathing heavily.

 _Where is an opening to win?_

And then she saw it.

As he sped towards her, weapon raised, instead of dodging like all the other times, Sora grinned.

And ran forward to meet him head on.

 _Leon may have said that sometimes it's better to get out of the way…But sometimes it's even better to do something an enemy won't expect!_

She saw Cloud's eyes widen as he tried to change his sword position. Sora's heart rate speed up, knowing she would have-

Sora fell to the ground with a loud groan.

"Owwww…" Sora mumbled, rolling onto her back as her keyblade fell to the ground and disappeared with a shing.

"You got too cocky." Cloud smirked as he looked down at her. "But you did good. A few more minutes and the tables may have turned."

 _Huh. The most you've said to me since our first meeting…_

Cloud had simply jumped in the air, heavy weapon and all, flipping behind her and attacking her exposed back. Sitting up, she stared at Cloud who gave a small smile to her.

"What was fighting like when you first started?" Sora asked, putting her hands behind her head and staring at the waterway top.

"I…" Cloud hesitated before running a hand through his hair and nodding. "I was cocky too…"

"Heh." Sora smiled at him. "It just means that I'm going to get even better then you as I get more experience! After all, if you turned out this strong while being cocky at first, imagine how strong I can be?!"

Cloud shook his head in bemusement as Sora beamed.

"Don't worry! I'll definitely beat you soon." And then Sora saw Leon coming. "And you too Leon!"

Leon came down from the stairs leading to the cavern, gunblade in hand with a frown (annoyed face) as he held some of Aerith's Barley Tea (that she always put sugar in even if Leon didn't like it).

"Is that so?" Leon asked, mouth twitching into a smile.

A smirk came across Cloud's face, as if something Sora had said had amused him.

"Sora! Come on!" Donald squawked as he ran into the water way. "We're going to be late for the Hercules Tournament!"

Coliseum

"AH!" Sora shouted, pointing at him. "So that's why you thought it was funny?!"

Cloud stood on the other side of the arena, weapon raised with amusement dancing in his eyes. They were in the fourth round and Sora was definitely planning to verse Hercules like she'd wanted.

Which meant she had to defeat Cloud.

She wouldn't let anything stop her and she _did_ feel confident.

After all, she'd nearly defeated him by herself. And this time, she had her friends with her.

"BEGIN!" Phil shouted and then Cloud attacked.

Sora raised her keyblade up to parry him, moving her body slightly forward so she wouldn't fall back from the force of his blows (she'd learnt that after the first dozen falls).

Cloud was already jumping away, having dodged Donald's thunder spell (that was thankfully accurate and hadn't hit Sora who was less than a metre away from the target) and heading towards Goofy.

"Gawrsh." Goofy frowned, raising his shield again before (most likely) remembering what happened last time (chopped shield).

So he did something else instead.

He fell over.

The crowd went hushed for a moment and Cloud's eyes widened but before he realised it, Sora had already jumped over Goofy, grinning like mad as she swung her keyblade towards him, having found an opening.

 _If Cloud's focused on Goofy falling over, he'll barely have time to see that Goofy was only being a distraction so I could attack!_

Of course, they hadn't planned that but Sora just _knew_ that what Goofy had done was to help her by being a distraction.

 _I guess it's like when I always teamed up with Riku against somebody else. I know him so well I know what he's planning! But this time I can tell what Goofy's doing!_

Goofy was up again, smiling as he ran to the side of the arena. Of course, Sora only saw this out of the corner of her eye, trying not to alert Cloud as she had a feeling Goofy was going to do something else.

Cloud seemed to be meeting her blow for blow and Sora frowned, knowing if this kept up, Cloud would beat her and then manage to beat Donald and Goofy anyway.

 _I'm not letting that happen!_

As a cure spell came over Sora ("thanks Donald!"), Sora quickly jumped back and raised her keyblade.

"MUSHU!" Sora shouted, grinning as flames erupted from her keyblade and…

A lizard-like creature appeared on her shoulder.

Mushu was the summon that Doom from Halloween Town had given her. When they had made it back to Traverse Town, she had stopped by Merlin's House and released Mushu. He was a very funny lizard…ah… 'dragon'…

"Sora, my girl!" Mushu smiled at her, his hands patting her face. "I knew you'd need my awesome help sometime-WAH"

Sora was already moving, knowing she didn't have time to explain to Mushu what was going on (hopefully he'd figure it out himself).

"Go girl! Get him!" Mushu shouted, jumping on her head and waving his fists around as he cheered her on. "I'll fry him with my fire!"

Sora rolled her eyes, even as she ran forward to meet Cloud's blade again, the force of his attacks increasing. The crowd was so loud now that Sora had lost track of hearing Donald and Goofy near her but that didn't matter.

Goofy had thrown in a few attacks here and there, allowing her to take a breath when she needed it (unlike in her training with Cloud) which meant she had already lasted longer than she thought.

"Alright! Let's go!" Mushu pointed a finger forward, a flame coming from his hand.

Sora's eyes widened when her keyblade suddenly erupted in flames-the beginnings of casting a fire spell.

 _What…It's like the keblade's…Telling me to cast fire…?_

"FIRE!" Sora shouted and Cloud's eyes widened as Mushu's fire and Sora's spell merged, creating a gigantic blast of fire that headed straight towards him.

"Go KID!" Cid's voice from the crowds almost made Sora smile but she continued to focus because Cloud wasn't defeated yet, having dodged the attack by jumping away (though he was unbalanced).

And that's when it happened.

Goofy launched in the air, shield raised before he rammed into Cloud, knocking him out of the arena.

There was a stunned silence as Cloud managed to put a hand out and flip back so he was standing up however he still remained outside the arena.

Which meant he was outside the boundary.

Which meant he lost.

"Winners: Sora, Donald and Goofy!" Phil announced, a big smile on his face.

The crowd went wild but Sora was too busy grinning and laughing as she ran up to Goofy with Donald, high fiving the both of them.

"That was awesome Goofy!" She laughed and Donald beamed, casting a healing spell on them all and getting rid of the fatigue in Sora's muscles.

"Gawrsh…" Goofy smiled bashfully. "It was nuthing'."

Last Round:

"Congratulations." Hercules grinned at them as he walked onto the arena.

The crowds were deafening in their cheers (Sora was sure a lot of them were for her) as Sora, Donald and Goofy stepped into the arena, all smiles and excited grins.

"Yep!" Sora grinned. "We did say we will beat you! Phil has to recognise us as heroes now!"

Hercules laughed, his eyes brightening as Phil shouted something from outside the ring.

"If you think beating opponents in a tournament makes you a hero kid, you got a long way to go!" Phi shouted as he placed the trophy down.

"What?!" Donald squawked out in Sora's defence as her head slumped down in dejection.

"Gawrsh, maybe we should just get ready?" Goofy asked and Sora sighed, raising her head to grin once more at Hercules.

 _I can't lose focus now…This is the last match…This is it…We are so going to win…! This is where all my training has led me! This is the proof that when we meet Maleficent, we_ _ **are**_ _strong enough to stop her from destroying the worlds!_

"Don't lose Sora!" Sora smiled as she heart Yuffie's scream from the crowds (apparently she had been defeated by Cloud in her third round).

"You ready?" Hercules grinned, raising his fists and nodding to them.

"Sora, my girl~" the high voice of Mushu the lizard ("That's DRAGON-I don't do that tongue thing!") made Sora turn her head. "Do you still need the mighty Mushu to help?"

 _Hmm…We're facing Hercules this time…There is no advantage because he's probably seen our battles with Mushu…_

"Not this time." Sora smiled at the dragon, who sighed but nodded. "But next time for sure!"

"Alright then." Mushu smiled, disappearing in a flash of light.

Sora turned to Hercules.

 _Riku…Kairi…Look how far I've gotten…I've faced countless strong opponents and winning! I'm getting stronger to save the worlds and find you guys…We'll be back together soon! I promise!_

Later…

"I can't believe it." Cid huffed out. "ya' beat the champion of the Tournament cause' he wasn't payin' attention."

Sora grinned, sharing a secret smile with Cloud. "He was too cocky."

Cloud snorted, even as he threw something toward Sora.

Catching it, Sora blinked at the keychain that had a chicken hanging off of it.

"A keychain?" Yuffie tilted her head in confusion as they exited the building. "Why'd ya' give Sora a keychain, Cloudy?"

"A keychain enhances the appearance and strength of Sora's keyblade." Leon explained as Sora summoned her keyblade.

Pulling off Tarzan's keychain and pocketing it with a smile, Sora attached Cloud's keychain.

There was a flash of light as Donald and Goofy gasped with Sora.

"Hehe." Aerith giggled. "It looks a bit like Cloud's sword."

Cloud looked away, a small blush on his face. "…Shut up…I gave it to her because she finally defeated me…"

"Thanks Cloud!" Sora beamed, quickly slashing downwards to test the keyblade. "It's awesome!"

Cloud nodded but didn't say anything as the group of eight went to their respective ships.

"You three should rest for today."Aerith said to them from the doorway of her ship. "You've had an exhausting day."

Sora looked at Donald and Goofy, biting her lip.

Donald looked hesitant but he nodded anyway. "We can't fight if we collapse…"

"Right." Aerith smiled. "The worlds are counting on you three, after all."

Back at Traverse Town:

"…Sora, what are you doing?" Yuffie sweat dropped.

Sora was banging her head repeatedly against the wall in front of the first district gate.

 _I forgot to search for the Coliseum keyhole…AGAIN?!_

* * *

 **Me:** So Sora beats the Hercules Tournament, gets to know Mushu and she forgets to find the Coliseum Keyhole. What will our cute Sora do next?

 **Sora:**...Please don't call me cute.

 **Me:** And Sora's keyblade has changed once more! The keychain she won from Cloud! It has high attack but not as many air combos (just so you can understand how Sora will fight).


	30. Sandstorm in Agrabah

**Me:** Hello all! Welcome to the: I need inspiration so please help me request

 **Sora:** She's just kidding. But feel free to leave a comment anyways!

* * *

 _ **It is my duty to expose what this darkness really is. I shall conduct the following experiments:**_

 _ **(1) Extract the darkness from a person's heart.**_

 _ **(2) Cultivate darkness in a pure heart.**_

 _ **(3) Both suppress and amplify the darkness within.**_

 _ **The experiments caused the test subject's heart to collapse, including those of the most stalwart. How fragile our hearts are! My treatment produced no signs of recovery. I confined those who had completely lost their hearts beneath the castle. Sometime later, I went below and was greeted by the strangest sight. Creatures that seemed born of darkness...What are they? Are they truly sentient beings? Could they be the shadows of those who lost their hearts in my experiments?**_

 _ **Just as people have hearts, so do worlds. The same can be said of stars in the night sky. And deep within each world lies a door to its heart. The Heartless desire those hearts. Born out of darkness in people's hearts, they seek to return to a greater heart. Yes that's it. The Heartless come from people's hearts, as does the darkness. Is the core of the world's heart the world of the Heartless? I will pursue the answer there and become all knowing. My path is set. I shall seek out the wielder of the Keyblade, and the princes. My body is too frail for such a journey, but I must do this. I will cast it off and plunge into the depths of darkness.**_

"He…Used experiments?" Sora frowned, looking up at a scowling Leon. "and…plunged into darkness…?

 _I know in the earlier report he said that but…I didn't think he would actually do it…_

"He…Wasn't what he seemed." Aerith sighed, looking away. "It seems he was the cause of the heartless."

"And Maleficent was just happy to take control after the heartless were created…." Sora muttered, looking down. "But what's this about 'princes'?"

"We're not sure." Leon frowned. "However, we can be sure that Maleficent _is_ using the hearts of the destroyed worlds for her goal."

"That's right." Aerith nodded. "She and her colleagues had these reports in their possession after all."

"We'd better go to the next world then…" Sora turned away from them, leaving the kitchen to go wake up Donald and Goofy. "We don't have any time to lose."

 _Riku, Kairi…Just bear with me a little longer…Something bad is underway…Please be safe…_

Gummi Ship:

"Okay!" Donald quacked. "We're having a review lesson!"

Sora and Goofy sweat dropped as they watched Donald pull out a piece of paper, muttering things under his breath.

"Wak!" Donald sat on his seat, spinning it to face them. "First up-the boy from Wonderland, Ace, has been kidnapped by the heartless."

"err…right." Sora nodded as Donald looked at her for confirmation.

"Maleficent controls the heartless so we can be sure it's the witch's fault." Donald continued as Chiop and Dale jumped on Sora's hair to listen better. "She has work partners who have joined her for the same goal most likely…but we don't know what that goal is."

"Hyuk! That's about right!" Goofy smiled.

"These work partners included Ursula and Ooggie Boogie, both who were defeated." Donald smiled as he read their accomplishments. "Other partners can be identified if they also control the heartless."

"Yep!" Sora smiled, pulling out a packet of chips and handing them around. "Don't forget Maleficent's goals have links to Ansem's report, who wasn't such a smart person after all."

"Right" Donald nodded, writing that down.

"And the King's probably already found out about Ansem's reports, right?" Sora asked and everyone frowned in thought.

"Most likely…" Goofy said, a hand on his chin in thought. "I mean, he'd havta' know if he was leading us to worlds where Maleficent's partners in crime were, right?"

"Yeah." Chip interrupted. "Our king's smart, remember?"

"Hmph." Donald frowned. "I never said he wasn't."

"ANYWAY…" Sora said loudly before an argument could break out. "If the king does know, he's already came to the same conclusion as us that Maleficent is destroying the worlds to use the power of their heart cores for her goal."

"Yep!" Jiminy nodded. "That seems like the best conclusion anyway. After all, if Ansem's reports said the cores of worlds had so much power, why would Maleficent let the darkness consume them unless to use that power?"

"And in the midst of all that, I've only managed to find Riku who pulled a vanishing act a few minutes after talking back in Traverse Town..." Sora sighed.

Donald leaned back, a sigh escaping his beak. "Things are getting more and more confusing."

Sora looked at Donald and Goofy before shrugging. "At least we can rely on Pluto to get more of Ansem's reports."

"Hyuk!" Goofy laughed, raising a finger. "Don't forget the Dalmatian puppies and the pages from Merlin's book!"

"But Pluto only found a few puppies and one page…" Sora's mouth dropped open as Goofy held out four pages. "HOW THE HECK?"

"The Dalmatian parents gave two as gifts and Pluto found another one a while ago." Goofy laughed and Sora turned amazed to stare at the sleeping Pluto.

"I want a dog like Pluto when Riku, Kairi and I go back to the islands." Sora grinned.

 _No more lost socks or getting lost myself…_

"Belts on!" Donald ordered, snapping Sora out of her thoughts. "Now that we've said our goals…-TO AGRABAH!"

 _The next world…_

Agrabah:

"Wow…"

That was the first thing Sora said when they saw the new world. It was covered in miles and miles of sand. There were smooth hills but the most surprising thing was that, unlike the sand on Destiny Islands, the sand here had no water or sea nearby.

"Where's all the water?" Sora frowned, turning to Donald and Goofy as they stepped off the ship.

"This is a desert." Jiminy supplied off Donald's shoulder, writing in his book. "There _is_ no water so make sure we drink our water sparingly."

Sora looked at her water bottle (Aerith had included three water bottles with food for them), wondering if it would be enough.

"Okay then…" Sora nodded, looking up at the bright blue sky. "But…It…sure is hot…"

 _Even hotter than the islands…_

The three of them started walking through the sand, their footprints leaving easy marks for them to follow back if they got lost.

"So…Where are we going?" Sora asked with her hands behind her head as they lazily made their way through the desert plains. "All I see is more sand and…more sand again…It's going to be really hard to find Riku, Kairi, the King or the keyhole in a place like this…"

"Wak…" Donald frowned, blocking out the sun with his arm as he looked around. "I see a black dot in the distance. How about we go there?"

"Gawrsh!" Goofy started running ahead of them. "Well, we'd better go quickly! There's a sandstorm comin'!"

 _A what…?_

Sora looked behind her only to yelp as sand went into her eyes. The wind was twisting sand through the air and even as Donald and Goofy shouted for her to hurry up, Sora could no longer see them through the sand storm.

The howl of the storm was so loud that Sora could no longer even hear them.

She chose a direction and ran.

Twenty minutes later…

Sora had been running around for ages, being tossed around like a rag doll through the ferocious sand storm. Her skin prickled where the sand slapped her exposed hands and legs and her eyes felt sore from the constant amount of sand flying into them and leaving her half blind…

All in all, it was a very unnerving and uncomfortable experience.

"Hey…If you're alive, can you help?" a woman's voice shouted from nearby.

Sora's head poked out from the sand, a weak protest coming off her lips as she raised her head.

"Please!" the woman's voice became panicked. "I can't get out of this on my own!"

 _Get up…_ _ **GET UP!**_

Sora ignored her body's protest, quickly grabbing a potion out of her bag and sculling it in one go, relaxing slightly as her raw pink skin started to turn its normal colour as it healed. Freed of pain, Sora launched into action as she finally took notice of her surroundings.

There was a huge sabor head sand sculpture a few metres away from her. It was dark black, as if it were stone even though it wasn't.

 _Black sand…_

And then Sora was running towards the 18 or 19 year old woman who was struggling to stay above the quick sand.

 _What to use..? What to use?!_

"Grab my hand!" Sora shouted, thrusting her hand out as far as she could (which wasn't much seeing as she was quite short).

"I…Can't!" the woman huffed out as she tried to get close. "I can't reach you!"

Sora blanched, having a flashback to when Riku had held out his hand and she couldn't reach him either.

 _No…! I'm not going to let this person disappear on me!_

Sora racked her brain for anything to help her save the woman without falling in the quicksand herself.

She was outside in the middle of a desert, all alone with nobody to aid her.

" _ **Sometimes you'll find yourself fighting alone but you have skills and the ability to think and plan." Leon told her.**_

 _This is not really helpful unless…OH! That's it! I have skills…! And I can use more than just the keyblade and casting fire…_

"BLIZZARD!" Sora shouted and she grinned as she successfully stopped the quicksand from moving. "Here!"

Holding out her hand, Sora tugged hard as the woman grabbed on, pulling her out of the now frozen quicksand and to safety.

"Thanks…" the woman sighed, falling down on the ground. "Geez...Next time I should have the lamp in my hands…"

"Lamp?" Sora asked as she looked at the woman.

The woman had jet black hair that curled to one side at her shoulder. She wore an open purple jacket with white baggy pants. Around her chest and waist there was an orange cloth.

 _Guess this must be the type of clothes this world wears…Kinda' strange but meh._

"I know Abu!" the woman sighed and Sora jumped, having not noticed the monkey on the woman's shoulder.

"So…Why were you stuck in the quicksand?" Sora asked, tilting her head in confusion.

"The sandstorm." The woman sighed, pulling out a lamp. "I'm Aladdina and this is Abu. Did you get caught too?"

"Yeah." Sora nodded. "I was with my friends but I've never been in a sandstorm before and we got separated…"

Aladdina blinked in surprise as she came closer and looked at Sora. "Yeah…You do seem like a traveller. Anyway I can show you back if you like."

"That would be great." Sora smiled at Aladdina before looking back at the head sand statue behind them. "What's with that thing?"

Aladdina grinned cheekily, putting some of her hair behind her ears. "That's the Cave of Wonders. I go there in search of treasure."

Aladdina had grabbed her lamp as she said that, pulling it up so Sora could get a good look at it. It seemed like an ordinary lamp but Sora had learned from all the worlds she had been to, that nothing was ever ordinary.

"Let me introduce Genie…" Aladdina grinned as she rubbed the lamp.

Sora's mouth dropped open as smoke began to come out and a loud male boisterous voice began speaking.

"LEAVE THE INTRODUCTIONS TO ME!"

The blue coloured genie winked at Sora as he flew around them, splitting into two and then three clones of himself.

"I AM THE ONE…THE ONLY…GENIE OF THE _LAMP_!"

Genie then caused fireworks to light up around the area, even though there were no fireworks nor hand motions.

 _So he's obviously magical…Or really advanced in magic anyway…_

"Rub a dub-dub the lamp and you guessed it! I'll grant you three wishes!" the genie smiled, enlarging his hand like magic.

Then his two other clones vanished as he counted down to one.

"Heh" Sora laughed as Genie put a hand on Aladdina's shoulder. "What will you do after Aladdina's made her three wishes?"

"Then I'll make like a banana and split!" Genie smiled, disappearing and reappearing above them. "So master, what'll it be?"

Aladdina blushed for a second, staring at the ground nervously before looking at Sora and Genie bashfully. "Actually…There's this guy I like…But he's a prince…Urgh…He could never like me…"

"Don't give up…" Sora frowned. "If you want to win a battle, you can't give up…"

Aladdina sweat dropped. "But I'm not winning a battle…"

Sora also sweat dropped at realising she'd failed at trying to cheer the woman up.

 _Well…I'm not very good at these conversations…_

"Al, winning your prince is your battle." Genie winked at the young woman, helping convey Sora's meaning.

Aladdina blushed again, mumbling something under her breath as Abu jumped on her shoulder. "I want to be a princess but I think I'll put my first wish on hold until we reach Agrabah."

"You think that's where Donald and Goofy are?" Sora tilted her head and Aladdin nodded.

"If you were able to see something that far off in the desert, it had to be a pretty big place." Aladdina explained, smiling warmly in thought, "and there's only one place in the Agrabah Desert that hosts such a big place and that's the City of Agrabah itself."

However Aladdina looked down at this last part, a frown on her face. "But Jafar's seized control of the palace so…right now it's not the best."

"Jafar…?" Sora frowned, nearly stumbling under some sand but Genie managed to grab her before she fell. "Thanks Genie. Who's Jafar?"

"The Vizier." Aladdina frowned. "or was the Vizier. He' seized control of Agrabah a while ago."

"Man…" Genie stretched leisurely. "The daily going-ons of normal people. How I love the fresh air!"

"What do you mean?" Aladdina raised her eyebrows and Genie smiled weakly.

"It comes with the cosmic powers." Genie sighed. "Great powers, itty-bitty living space. Plus I have to obey whatever my master wishes. In a way…you could say I'm trapped."

There was silence for a second before Aladdina smiled. "Then I'll just use my third wish to set you free."

Genie stopped suddenly, stunned as he stared at the young woman. "Thanks Al…Even if you don't mean it."

Aladdina rolled her eyes with Sora, as if exasperated at Genie's non- belief that he would be a free genie very soon. And then a carpet lunged towards them, the ends of it singed slightly as it fell to the ground in (what looked to be) an exhausted heap.

"Carpet!" Aladdina gasped as Genie started having a quick conversation with the injured carpet.

"Al! Your man's been taken hostage." Genie spun around to talk to Aladdina. "and he's just outside Agrabah with his captor!"

Sora's eyes widened along with Aladdina.

"Let's go!" Aladdina shouted, running forward to the just noticeable gates of Agrabah in the distance.

* * *

 **Me:** And now we have the world I've been looking forward too!


	31. Jasmoon Kicks Ass!

**Me:** We're back! I'm having a bit of trouble updating regularly. It's the holidays for me and so I'm not always at home (or have access to a computer to update). As such, like now, I apologies for any late updates.

* * *

Sora quickly ran forward after Aladdina, heading closer to the gates of Agrabah with a sense of dread. If things were as bad as they seemed….

Sora hoped Donald and Goofy were okay.

"On the carpet!" Genie waved to them from beside them. "That way they won't see you coming."

Though Sora knew the seriousness of the situation, she couldn't help but feel excited as she grabbed Aladdina's hand and jumped on the flying carpet.

 _I'm on a flying carpet!_

A grin split across her face as they flew higher in the sky. The air was cooler and refreshing on her face and Sora could even see some birds flying further along in the sky.

"We'll come in from the sun angle…" Aladdina muttered. "That way nobody will see us coming"

Sora nodded, surprised that even Riku's island fighting tricks worked in other situations too. "That's right! Nobody looks directly into the sun, after all so it's definitely a place we can use to our advantage."

"Alright!" Genie grinned, flying beside them. "Get ready to get your man back, Al!"

As they reached the gates of Agrabah, Sora could see the man who was most likely the kidnapper. He had a red cloak and turban, a horrid mustache and a red bird hanging off his shoulder.

 _Kind of like a pirate…Or a pirate who lives on sand instead of water…_

Aladdina's 'man' was probably the male who had his hands tied behind his back. He wore a blue-green open jacket with baggy blue-green pants, much like what Aladdina wore. However, his clothes looked like they were made from silk and much more expensive.

 _Oh yeah! Aladdina did say the guy she liked was a prince!_

The carpet suddenly dived straight down, startling Sora though she managed to lean forward so she wasn't thrown back. As they had reached the gates, only 50 meters above it and still hidden by the sun, the carpet descended downwards, directly for the shadow of the few palm trees to offer them cover outside the gates of Agrabah.

Jumping down with a soft thump, Sora and Aladdina cautiously edged closer through the palm trees, peaking out to get a better look at what was going on.

"It's Jafar…" Aladdina scowled. "What's he want with Jasmoon? I already had to help him escape from this evil guy…"

Jafar held tightly onto some sort of staff, looking almost impatient as he waited for something. Sora gasped suddenly as she saw behind him and just through the crevice into Agrabah. Donald and Goofy were unconscious, tied up and surrounded by heartless.

"What's wrong?!" Aladdina whispered quietly to Sora, turning her head back slightly to look at the young teen.

"My friends!" Sora whispered back, eyes not leaving her friends as the heartless and their menacing swords drifted closer to them every few seconds.

 _They were captured by the heartless!_

"I see…" Aladdina frowned, looking in the same direction as Sora. "Jafar seems to have taken your friends as well…"

The both of them tensed suddenly as heartless appeared in front of Jafar-the same sword wielding heartless with a turban.

"Still no luck on the keyhole…" Jafar scowled. "Where could it be?"

Everything seemed to make sense.

Jafar. Controlling the heartless. Searching for the keyhole.

 _He's with Maleficent! And he's captured my friends! But why has he captured Jasmoon…?_

 **Flashback:**

" **Have you told them yet?" Leon sighed and Aerith shook her head so Leon spoke. "Apparently there have been universal kidnappings-just like with the boy called Ace. Something is definitely not right so be on your guard."**

" **Right." Sora nodded, clenching her fists.**

 _ **Could Maleficent be behind this?**_

 **End Flashback**

 _He's going to kidnap Jasmoon as well! But why? Wait! Ansem's reports mentioned something about princes! This can't be good!...No….There's no time right now! We have to rescue them-_

Sora paused as Aladdina's hand shot out in front of her, preventing Sora from stepping forward to fight.

"It's better if we don't fight…" Aladdina frowned. "Those weird guys are all over Agrabah and we can't fight them all and rescue Jasmoon and your friends too…"

It seemed Genie knew what was going to happen for he grinned and bowed as Aladdina turned to him. "Don't worry al! Just say the words and I'll have everyone all safely away."

Aladdina nodded. "Genie, I wish for Jasmoon, Donald and Goofy to be released from Jafar's hold."

"Wish number one: Coming right up!" Genie whispered, clicking his fingers just as a poof of smoke surrounded Jasmoon, Donald and Goofy.

Sora's keyblade came into her hand, standing protectively in front of the cloud of smoke where Jasmoon, Donald and Goofy appeared behind her.

"What?!" Jafar cursed, spinning around and looking around as Aladdina untied Jasmoon, who smiled warmly at her.

"I knew you'd come back." He grinned. "Thanks for that."

Aladdina blushed, mumbling something as she looked away.

"Heartless, search the area!" Jafar shouted and Sora tensed encase any heartless attacked. Jafar moved further out the desert, staring around and probably hoping to catch sight of his fleeing prisoners who were really hiding behind the trees.

"Come on." Jasmoon said, grabbing Aladdina's hand as he stood up and accepted a small pocket knife off her. "We'd better move."

"But…" Sora frowned, looking at the still unconscious Donald and Goofy.

 _We can't leave them.._

"I'll take him." Jasmoon said, pointing to Goofy. "Aladdina, can you take the duck?"

"Right." Aladdina nodded, picking up Donald and putting him on the carpet.

"Let's go." Jasmoon whispered, sneaking around the trees with Goofy on his back. "We'll hide in the palace until those creatures of Jafar are gone."

"Oh really?" Jafar's voice broke the tense silence and the three of them (with two unconscious people being carried) spun around.

Jafar was smirking nastily, his face twisting into an almost dark look as he glared at them.

Sora had her keyblade out instantly, eyes narrowed as she took a step forward and glared at Jafar as heartless ran up to him and stood near him. "I won't let you near my friends!"

"Really, keyblade bearer?" Jafar smirked again. "You've already failed that. Still, I should've expected when you weren't with your sidekicks that you'd just find a person just as bad…a street rat."

 _What…did he mean by 'failed that statement'…? Has he done something to my friends…?_

Aladdina glared at the insult, even as Sora raised her keyblade higher as the sword heartless took a few steps closer at sensing Jafar's malicious intent.

"Genie!" Aladdina shouted. "As owner of the lamp, for my second wish, please get us out of here!"

 _Aladdina…You used your second wish to save us…_

However, before Sora could smile in relief and gratitude at Aladdina, Jafar laughed, holding out his hand where Genie's lamp sat.

"Do you mean this lamp?" Jafar smirked as Genie's face fell and Aladdina's hand went to her waist, where it was lamp-free. "So sorry, dear girl. I'm afraid the genie has a new master."

 _No! …I guess we'll just have to fight then!_

Jasmoon whipped out his knife, scowling at Jafar. "You may have the advantage in magic however as prince of this kingdom, I've been trained in fighting from a young age. Fight, you coward!"

Jafar raised an eyebrow before gesturing to the heartless. "Why should I fight measly pests like you, prince Jasmoon…when I can simply order the heartless to fight you instead?"

"Donald…Goofy…!" Sora frowned, pulling out two potions from her bag as heartless after heartless appeared around Jafar.

She couldn't fight with two unconscious teammates.

A potion later and they slowly came to, getting up and looking around in confusion.

"Sora!" Donald shouted suddenly, after seeing her.

"You're okay, hyuk!" Goofy smiled. "We've got a lot ta' talk about!"

"Yeah!" Donald started. "We know what-"

"There's no time to talk, Donald, Goofy!" Jasmoon told them (they must've met up before they were captured if Jasmoon already knew their names). "We've got to escape Jafar first!"

"You think you can escape me?" Jafar laughed again even as the heartless moved closer to them, surrounding them in a circle. "I have the heartless and your precious genie on my side."

 _If we can only get into Agrabah…We could possibly lose him and the heartless…_

Though Donald looked like he was about ready to burst with information to tell Sora, the duck nodded and pulled out his staff after downing an ether for energy and handing one to Goofy as well.

"Heartless." Jafar drawled out, raising his arm and pointing towards them as Aladdina moved closer to Jasmoon while Abu jumped up to one of the trees to probably stay out of the way. "Seize the prince and destroy the rest of them."

The whole group of about forty heartless ran towards them and Sora ran forward, seeing the dire situation they were in.

Jafar smirked as he watched the situation, even as he turned to the Genie to continue speaking. "Stop cheering them on, you big oaf."

Genie had been cheering them on, unable to help because Jafar was his master but still willing to give moral support.

 _Don't worry Genie…! We'll rescue you too!_

Aladdina and Jasmoon were a deadly combo, one extremely agile from days as a street dweller and one trained in fighting. The heartless were being defeated as quickly as they appeared.

Donald and Goofy had regrouped with Sora and the three of them were attacking back to back, preventing any heartless from getting the upper hand.

"Sora!" Donald shouted and Sora nodded, bringing her keyblade with his and casting fire at the same time as he did.

A huge fireball slammed into around four heartless, though it seemed to not do a lot of damage.

"They're strong against fire!" Sora shouted even as Donald nodded, casting thunder to stun some more heartless near Goofy.

"We're in a desert!" Aladdina shouted nearby. "Every heartless is bound to be strong against heat!"

 _Opps…Kind of forgot that…Well, in that case…_

"SIMBA!" Sora shouted, summoning her familiar lion friend as a roar broke out across the area.

"I'm on it Sora!" Simba shouted to the girl in question, slicing through the heartless as Sora began her own counter attacks to the group that threatened to overwhelm her with pure force.

"Urgh, this is taking too long." Jafar said from somewhere but before Sora had time to look, a bang was heard and Aladdina gave a cry of pain.

Spinning around, Sora's eyes widened as she saw Aladdina on the ground, Jasmoon desperately calling for her to wake up as he shook Aladdina's shoulders.

The heartless though did not seem to care Aladdina was injured and lunged for the two of them anyway.

"Thunder!" Donald squawked out and both Sora and Goofy charged the heartless, giving Jasmoon and Aladdina a heartless free area.

"Aladdina, wake up!" Jasmoon shouted, even as Genie tried peering anxiously over to see if his buddy was okay.

Aladdina seemed to be unconscious but there was blood trickling from a head wound when Jafar had caused the mini explosion.

Sora glared harder, swinging her keyblade in a wide ark in an effort to block the attacks the heartless threw at her.

"Urgh!"

Sora looked back, eyes widening as a flash of light invaded her vision for a few seconds.

"No!" Donald squawked in alarm as Jasmoon, who had still been too preoccupied with Aladdina, was hit with Jafar's second explosion spell.

Jasmoon was blasted away from Aladdina, crashing into the ground a few times before he finally came to a stop near the palace wall. His arms were limp and his eyes were closed.

 _NO!_

But before Sora could even move, the heartless had surrounded Jasmoon and had picked him up, vanishing and reappearing back next to Jafar.

"Looks like I win, girl." Jafar smirked, turning to Genie. "Now, for my first wish…I wish to know the location of the keyhole."

Genie looked regretfully at Sora and co., covering his face in shame. "…As you wish…master…."

Genie clicked his finger and suddenly the sand shifted a bit to reveal a path leading out into the desert. Jafar scoffed (probably at the thought of walking) but turned back to Sora.

"Have fun fighting the heartless." Jafar smirked again as the two heartless carrying Jasmoon dragged the unconscious man along the path. "Because it will be the last thing you ever do."

As Jafar turned and started walking the path, Genie mouthed that he would 'slow Jafar down' and Sora felt her heart beat rise. They had a chance-Sora groaned as more heartless appeared.

And then Simba was near her again, using humongous swipes to keep the heartless at bay.

"Go! Rescue your friend!" Simba shouted, looking back for a second to stare at Sora before slashing at the heartless once more. "I'll hold them off!"

"…But…-" Sora began, but Donald was already grabbing her arm, dragging her to the magic carpet where Goofy had put the unconscious Aladdina on.

"Come on!" Donald shouted. "We _have_ to save Jasmoon! We can't let Jafar or Maleficent get him!"

Abu the monkey was screeching from the trees but he didn't come down to go on the magic carpet. Instead, he continued to throw coconuts and other items from the trees down at the heartless.

 _Simba and Abu are providing a distraction so we can save Jasmoon…Alright! We won't waste that chance!_

Getting on the magic carpet, it sped off towards the desert once more, following the path to the keyhole.

 _We can't let the heartless get the keyhole! I won't let Jafar or Maleficent destroy this world…Or kidnap Jasmoon!_

"Sora…" Donald said sadly, staring at Aladdina. "She's not waking up…"

Sora's eyes widened as she stared at her new female friend. Aladdina's eyes were still closed, her eyes a pastel white as her breathing got slower and slower.

"N-No…" Sora whispered, horror curling within her gut.

 _Aladina can't die! She still has to make her wish so she can be with Jasmoon! So she can be happy!_

"What about your elixir, Sora?" jiminy hopped off Donald's shoulder, pointing at Sora's pockets. "Wouldn't that heal the worst of all wounds?"

"OH!" Sora fumbled as the carpet continued to speed along the air, following the path. "Of course!"

Grabbing out her one and only elixir, Sora quickly smashed it in her hands over Aladdina's body. The green glow surrounded Aladdina and for a few seconds Sora, Donald and Goofy waited with a nervous and fearful demeanour.

Aladdina coughed suddenly, eyes fluttering open.

Sora smiled in relief at Donald as Goofy helped Aladdina to sit up.

"What happened?" Aladdina said suddenly and Sora looked at Goofy and Donald, silently asking them to tell the story that the guy she liked had been kidnapped again.

* * *

 **Me:** Da' shizzi has hit the fan!

 **Sora:** I have to admit, Jasmoon is a pretty cool name!

 **Me:** Making him fight is technically in character because I'm pretty sure they'd train Jasmoon from a young age... or he'd have fought to learn to fight anyway. As a boy-Jasmine, I'm pretty sure it would have been more acceptable for him to learn...

 **Aladdina:** But did I have to play the damsil in distress?

 **Me:** You'll get your revenge, don't worry. You ain't no damsel in distress. If anything, Jasmoon is the damsel in distress...


	32. Friends

**Me:** Okay! I've updated!

 **Sora:** Unfortunately, Mearad is still on her holidays for another week so there might not be any updates until then...

 **Me:** I'll try but I can't guarantee anything. Apologies!

* * *

"We have to go save Jasmoon!" Aladdina said suddenly, eyes wide with panic. "I…Um…That is, if you want to help…"

"Of course!" Sora said instantly, scowling at the thought of not helping. "Why wouldn't we help? We're friends, after all! And besides, we have reason to believe Jafar is in league with somebody who is causing a lot of problems for many worl-"

Donald suddenly put his hand around Sora's mouth, scowling at her as he continued speaking, much to Aladdin's confusion. "We have reason to believe Jafar is in league with somebody who is …Causing problems for many _**people**_ …."

… _Opps….Forgot we're not supposed to mention worlds…But really…If he's after the keyhole and controlling the heartless…there's no doubt about it…_

"Are you sure…?" Aladdina asked doubtfully. "Jafar isn't really one to work with others unless it benefits him…"

But before Sora could answer, Goofy did instead, raising a hand. "We're sure. Jasmoon heard that Jafar talking with somebody called 'Maleficent'. That's the one who has been causin' lots of problems."

 _So my suspicions were right!_

"That's not all." Donald said grimly. "They were talking about collecting the princes of heart and how Jasmoon is one of those princes."

Sora sweat dropped, even as Donald frowned in confusion. "That…Was exactly the same conclusion I came to…"

"Hyuk!" Goofy smiled. "Great minds thing alike!"

Sora smiled with Donald before the trio turned to stare at Aladdina, who still had a worried frown on her face.

"Don't worry Aladdina." Goofy smiled (they had made introductions earlier). "We'll save Jasmoon."

Aladdina blinked before smiling weakly. "Yeah…I'm just worried."

"So am I-" Sora began before she frowned at seeing a familiar sabor sand-sculpture. "…Is that the Cave of Wonders?"

As the carpet pulled up just outside the mouth, the four of them looked at each other.

"Let's go." Aladdina said, leading the way down the steps starting from the sabor's mouth (the entrance to the Cave of Wonders).

The Cave of Wonders was a maze of traps and carefully hidden rooms as Sora soon found out. Nearly being squished by a huge rolling ball, getting burned by a gargoyle head and nearly falling off the steps into the dark mist below because the wall decided to push out, Sora was on her guard more than she wanted to.

Especially with all the heartless-a mix of huge round heartless that breathed fire and more deadly skilled sword-wielding heartless.

"Man, how are we meant to know where the keyhole is?" Donald shouted as they finally dispatched another group of heartless.

"I…I'm not sure." Aladidna frowned. "I'm only going to the places where I've been-the rest would be too dangerous to risk going to unless we absolutely had to."

Sora frowned, worry eating away at her.

 _What if Jafar's already at the keyhole? What if the heartless are-_

The keyblade appeared in her hand and gave a small thrum. Sora gasped, even as everybody else took that for a sign to get out their weapons.

"it's not heartless…" Sora muttered in awe, bringing the attention to her keyblade. "The keyblade….I feel like it's telling me to go this way…"

Sora suddenly took the lead, going down a path leading into a room filled with gold and expensive looking jewellery.

"This was the room I was going to come to next…" Aladdina nodded, smiling sadly. "This was where I found Genie's lamp."

"Really?" Sora asked. "So you came here to get Genie to grant your wish, right? To be a princess?"

Aladdina looked away sadly. "Yeah…"

"You've still got two more wishes left though." Sora smiled. "After all, Genie never granted your second wish."

Aladdina nodded weakly. "I suppose so…"

"Hyuk." Goofy laughed. "I don't think ya' need to be a princess. Prince Jasmoon likes ya' the way you are. When we met him in Agrabah, he told us about Jafar and his 'beautiful rescuer'. Hyuk!"

Aladdina's face flamed as everybody else laughed.

At least until the keyblade started to thrum louder and then it stopped as they reached stairs descending into a room beyond.

"Sora?" Aladdina asked worriedly as Sora stopped, taking a deep breath.

"I think…I think Jafar is beyond these stairs." Sora said quietly and everyone lost their casual stance, straightening up in alertness.

"But how do you know?" Aladdina frowned.

"I…" Sora frowned. "If Jafar's found the keyhole, the keyblade can sense where it is as the keyhole has finally been revealed…I think anyway…"

"It's the best explanation anyhow…" Donald muttered, even as Aladdina sweat dropped.

"I have no idea what you mean by 'keyhole' but…Let's go!" Aladdina said and the four of them ran down the stairs.

As soon as they entered, they came across a circular cave room. The middle of the room floor was grey rock while the outer edge was normal brown rock. Though Sora didn't have time to dwell on anything, as she immediately spotted Jafar…talking to a woman who was pale, had a cane and a black cloak…

A woman who looked eerily like the description of Maleficent Leon had given her.

"Doing so may prove useful to our-" Jafar argued with Maleficent, his back to Sora and her friends.

 _So he is working with Maleficent! We can defeat her here and now! Along with Jafar!_

He stopped suddenly at hearing the shing of Sora's keyblade, turning to sneer at them. "You're still alive? Once a street rat, always a street rat."

Aladdina scowled. "Jafar! You'd better give Jasmoon back!"

Jafar smirked even as Sora spotted the keyhole and the unconscious Jasmoon near Maleficent.

 _No…! We have to distract them!_

"Are you…Maleficent?" Sora asked and the woman just stared coldly at Sora, an icy smirk coming onto her face.

That seemed to be reason enough for Sora and she launched forward, keyblade raised to attack Maleficent. However, the woman vanished suddenly and before Sora could even gasp, Jafar had blasted her back with a spell.

"SORA!" Donald shouted, casting a cure spell on her as she stood up with the help of Aladdina and Goofy.

"We can't…let them win!" Sora shouted, glaring at Jafar. "We're getting prince Jasmoon back whether you like it or not!

 _We may have missed Maleficent this time but we'll definitely stop you!_

"Not a chance." Jafar scoffed, gesturing to the unconscious male. "You see, he's a prince. One of seven who somehow hold the key to opening the door."

… _Door?_

"Open…?" Donald muttered

"The door?" Goofy put a hand to his mouth in realisation.

Everything seemed to just be getting more confusing but luckily Aladdina was there to bring them back to the present.

"I could care less what your plans are!" Aladdina shouted. "We're taking Jasmoon back and stopping you once and for all!"

Sora nodded, raising her keyblade higher.

 _That's right! Even if we still don't know what Maleficent's plans really are yet, we can worry about it later! Right now, we know they're collecting the princes for something about a door. If we stop them now, we're as good as stopping Maleficent anyway!_

"You're forgetting two things." Jafar sighed. "One, I have an all-powerful genie on my side. And two…you fools won't live past today."

It was only then that they seemed to notice Genie again, who had been hovering in the background.

"My second wish…" Jafar smirked. "Crush them!"

"Genie…." Aladdina whispered, even as Genie closed his eyes as if in physical pain.

"I'm sorry Al…I don't have a choice…" Genie said.

And Sora did the only thing she could think of at that moment. "MOVE!"

A loud noise broke through and when Sora looked back, her heart beat faster as it pumped adrenaline to aid her to survive.

Genie's hands were enlarged and pulverising large parts of the ground, coming extremely close to crushing some of them. He was shooting jets of fire out of his fingers and as Sora dodged rolled out of another one, her battle smarts kicked in and she focused half of her attention of Jafar…

Who was aiming a spell right at Aladdina.

"ALADDINA!" Sora shouted and Aladdina turned, eye widening as she saw the spell coming towards her.

And then carpet was back, pushing Aladdina out of the way of Jafar's attack. Sora gasped, dodging Genie's fists again and using her keyblade to summon help again.

"MUSHU!" Sora shouted, a plan already forming in her mind as the red lizard ("I'm A DRAGON!") appeared on her shoulder.

"We need lots of fire!" Sora shouted to Mush instantly.

 _If we can cover ourselves behind smoke…We should have the advantage…But what to do…?_

Jafar laughed again, blasting Donald into the wall with his staff.

Sora clicked.

"NOW MUSHU!" Sora shouted as she ran to Goofy and Aladdina, grabbing them and dragging them towards Donald.

Sora spun around, fire erupting from her keyblade as she aimed at the same place as Mushu. Fire burst above them all, the intense heat sending sweat rolling down their faces and their eyes to water but keeping them covered.

"We'll try and take Jafar's staff!" Sora shouted. "That way he can't cast magic!"

Aladdina nodded as Goofy gave Donald a potion. Getting up, the four of them quickly ran to different areas as the fire began to disappear and the smoke began to settle.

"You fools!" Jafar roared. "You dare try to burn me!"

Sora had hidden behind one of the rocks, intent on jumping out. Her eyes narrowed and she lunged…Only to stare in shock at what happened next.

"KAARCREET!" Abu shouted, riding on top of the magic carpet.

Jafar looked up, scowling…Just as Abu threw a coconut (probably from the trees back outside Agrabah) down onto his head.

"OMPH!" Jafar let out a pained groan, falling to the ground in a heap.

Abu cheered with Genie, even as Aladdina laughed with Sora, Donald and Goofy spinning around in a circle, joining hands as they cheered.

 _And that just shows you the power of friends! If we work together, powerful sorcerer or not-We'll win!_

Turning towards the keyhole, Sora summoned her keyblade and a jet of light went towards the keyhole, locking it with a final click.

Donald moved forward, waiting for a gummi piece to fall out…Except none did.

"What?" Donald frowned at Sora and Goofy, who shrugged back as surprised as the duck.

 _I wonder why the king didn't leave a world coordinate gummi piece at the keyhole this time? Maybe something happened?_

"Jasmoon…" Aladdina muttered as she put a hand to his pulse befor sighing in relief. "He's just unconscious…Sora, can you hand me a poti-"

"Genie!"

Everyone tensed, turning back to look at Jafar (who has a head wound and looked like his nose was broken). He also still had the lamp in his possession and Genie groaned, even as everybody else got their weapons out.

"My third wish!" Jafar shouted. "Make me an all-powerful genie!"

Genie's eyes widened and his hands trembled as he pointed a finger at Jafar. A blue light shot from his fingertip and surrounded Jafar.

"Haha….HAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHA!" Jafar cackled as he got bigger and bigger, morphing into a huge genie.

 _Damn it! One genie was bad enough! How am I meant to fight a genie that has so much power at his fingertips-_

" _ **It comes with the cosmic powers." Genie sighed. "Great powers, itty-bitty living space. Plus I have to obey whatever my master wishes. In a way…you could say I'm trapped."**_

Sora grinned, running forward even as shouts of alarm from her friends ordered her not to. Magic swirled around her but Sora could have sworn she saw a black lamp to her left.

Lunging, Sora groaned as a pain blazed in her leg. But her hands gripped the lamp and she rolled onto her back.

"JAFAR, AS HOLDER OF THE LAMP, I ORDER YOU BACK INTO YOUR LAMP!" Sora shouted and Jafar stopped stunned in the middle of his laughing.

"What…?" he muttered as metal clamps appeared on his wrists. "This…NO! This can't be! NOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

The red bird, Iago or something, tried to fly away but as Jafar was sucked into his lamp, he grabbed onto the bird and they were both sucked into it.

"My words are absolute, you know?" Sora sniggered, even as Donald and Goofy ran up to her and ruffled her hair (Goofy) and patted her back (Donald).

"That was awesome!" Genie cheered just as Aladdin shouted.

"He's gone!" Aladdin looked at them from where Jasmoon was supposed to be. "Jasmoon's gone!"

 _Crap…!_

They'd forgotten to have somebody guard him!

 _Of all the things to forget! Damn it! What's the point in getting better in skills if I still make such stupid mistakes?! Jasmoon's been taken by Maleficent!_

But before Sora could kick herself over her foolishness, the cave began to shake.

"The cave is collapsing!" Aladdina shoued, calling desperately for Jasmoon.

"We have to go!" Sora shouted grabbing Aladdina's hand and trying to tug the young woman towards the magic carpet.

"No! Not without Jasmoon!" Aladdina shouted and Sora snapped.

"He's no longer here! That woman's taking him to another world!" Sora shouted, finding an opening and pulling the stunned Aladdina onto the carpet….

And right into a livid Donald's face and a worried Goofy.

"Everybody on?" Genie shouted above the noise as he handed Al the lamp. "That's great, let's GO!"

They were about halfway out of the room when Sora screamed. "GOOFY!"

He _wasn't_ on the carpet-even though he had been a few seconds ago.

Snapping her head around, Sora spotted Goofy's shocked face holding papers...papers that Jafar had dropped…Papers that looked extremely like Ansem's report.

 _Idiot! You're more important than the reports!_

"We have to go back!" Sora shouted, even as the rocks began to cave in being them. "We can't leave him!"

"It's impossible!" Aladdina shouted, turning to Genie. "My second wish-save Goofy!"

"One saving, coming right up!" Genie nodded, clicking his fingers and Goofy appeared on the carpet, a sigh of relief escaping him as he clutched the papers to him.

"Goofy, you idiot!" Both Sora and Donald shouted at the exact time, glaring at a bashful Goofy.

But they didn't have time to say anymore as Carpet was trying its hardest to get them to the entrance of the Cave of Wonders and outside to the desert.

The night sky was just visible and rocks were narrowly missing them, coming closer and closer…

And then they shot out of the mouth of the sabor sculpture, landing in the fresh desert outside.

 _We're safe…_

Taking deep breaths, everyone got up battered and bruised from stray rocks but all alive.

"That…Was a close one…" Donald muttered as Aladdina turned to Sora, an unusual expression on her face.

"What did you mean…'Jasmoon's no longer in this world?'"

Sora twitched, straightening even as Donald's glare refocused on her. "I had to tell Aladdina! She wouldn't leave otherwise!"

"Take me with you!" Aladdina said desperately. "You guys are fighting that woman, aren't you? Let me come with you so I can find Jasmoon!"

"NO!" Donald stamped his foot. "That would be meddling!"

"We're not aloud." Sora sighed, even though she privately thought that rule was a stupid one. "But we promise we'll find Jasmoon. We're looking for others who were kidnapped by Maleficent too…"

 _Ace and the other kidnappings…_

"Al." Genie smiled weakly to Aladdina who seemed depressed. "You've still got one wish left. Ask me to find him."

"But genie…Your freedom…" Aladdina muttered, even as Sora felt a painful tug.

 _Kairi and Riku were always willing to give up things for me as well…Genie is a really good friend to Al…_

"It doesn't matter." Genie smiled sadly. "This is about love which is much more important."

Aladdina looked up tearfully at Genie before speaking slowly. "I wish…For your freedom Genie."

Sora's eyes widened even as understanding dawned on her again.

 _But then again…I was always willing to give up things for them as well. And that's what friends do…Just like what Aladdina did…Just like how Goofy risked his life to get the Ansem reports for us…We all do everything for each other. We are each other's pillars of strength._

"AL!" Genie shouted in shock before a golden glow surrounded him.

The chains around his arms broke and he spouted legs. He was still blue but…he seemed happy.

"You're free Genie." Aladdina smiled at Genie. "Now nobody can order you around ever again."

 _She was thinking of what happened with Jafar all this time…How Genie seemed so upset…Aladdina really is a good person…_

"I promise you." Sora smiled confidently. "We'll definitely find Jasmoon!"

 _I know I can fulfil all my promises!_

"I know." Aladdina smiled, turning to Genie. "Do you mind helping them out Genie?"

Genie frowned.

"Sorry Al, I'm done taking orders." But then Genie grinned. "However…A favour is entirely different. Of course!"

Aladdina smiled warmly as Abu jumped on her shoulder. Genie handed Sora his old lamp, winking at her.

"You know what to do." Genie grinned. "I'll be there instantly to help."

Sora smiled, turning to Donald and Goofy. "We should be going."

 _We've got a lot to do._

Sora looked at the numerous pages of Ansem's report.

 _And a lot to give to Aerith to decode._

Gummi Ship:

"So where should we go next?" Sora asked as she walked on the ship first. "We didn't get a navigation piece this time…"

"I'm not sure…" Donald frowned. "Maybe we should talk to Merlin or Leon and the gang?"

"Hold on fellas!" Goofy raised his hand. "We still haven't closed the keyhole in Hercule's world! Why not after the Hades tournament tomorrow, we search for the keyhole?"

Sora's eyes widened and she nodded. "Goofy, you're brilliant!"

"Sometimes." Jiminy said from Donald's shoulder. "He makes some stupid decisions regarding his own safety."

Goofy scratched the back of his head bashfully jut as Pluto walked onto the ship.

"Damn it!" Chip cursed. "Stop bringing puppies onto the ship Pluto!"

Pluto barked happily as the 15 puppies trailed behind him.

One of the puppies dropped a paper on the ground and Sora picked it up, sweat dropping as she realised what it was.

 _Pluto found yet another piece of Merlin's book…I swear, that dog is one amazing finder…_

"Let's go…" Donald shook his head. "We can't warp back to Traverse Town because the puppies could get hurt as they aren't buckled up. So it's going to take us around an hour to get back."

Sora sighed, yawning a bit as she sat in her seat.

 _Mustn't fall asleep…Mustn't fall asleep…I have some heartless ships to shoot at…_

"SORA, WAKE UP!"

Somewhere else:

"Kairi!"

"Go to him. Your vessel is waiting."

Footsteps came from nearby.

"Just remember, this is no pleasure cruise. It won't be a pleasant voyage."

* * *

 **Me:** Sora's learning to realise how important friendship is. She's... growing up so fast *sob*

 **Sora:**...Do shut up.

 **Goofy:** Did anyone else notice we didn't get a navigation gummi?

 **Sora:** O_O


	33. Monster

**Me:** I'm back finally!

 **Kairi:** How was your holidays?

 **Me:** Awesome! Thank you for asking! Thank you to everyone being so patient while I was on holidays! Rest assured, you won't have to wait long for updates.

* * *

"Hey, what's this button?" Chip asked, pointing to a red button on the control dashboard. "I don't remember it being here before…"

The group were still on their way back to Traverse Town, having been travelling for around half an hour already in comfortable silence (or as much silence as one could get dodging heartless ships and shooting at them). As such, when the silence was broken, they all turned their eyes to the newly installed button.

It was flashing red and in white letters, it had the words 'push me' on it.

"Looks suspicious…" Donald muttered, putting the gummi ship on standby (immobile mode) so he could get a better look. "WAK! Sora, what are you-"

Sora got out of her chair after taking her seatbelt off, grinning happily as she pushed the button.

 _We won't know until we try it!_

Donald face palmed. "Really? You press a button you don't know? I swear, if you crash the ship _again_ -"

" _WHAT?!"_ Sora bellowed out as she turned to him angrily.

 _He's still on that?_

"Hey."

"-I didn't crash it last time!" Sora shouted. "I _nearly_ crashed it! There's a difference!"

"Hey!"

"There _isn't_ a difference seeing as we would have crashed had I not moved the steering wheel!" Donald shouted back, even as Sora sighed, giving up.

 _Too much effort…We're always going on about this…_

"Um, fellas…" Goofy began but Sora help up a hand.

"Just a sec, Goofy." Sora frowned before turning back to Donald. "I bet with some practice and a detailed explanation I _could_ run the ship." Sora finalized, crossing her arms stubbornly.

 _There's no way I'm giving up my dream of flying one of them!_

"Um…." Goofy sweat dropped as Donald started talking. "…hyuk…."

"I guess…" Donald frowned, " _but_ that doesn't mean now. Maybe after we've found the king and your friends-"

"ARE YOU GUYS GOING TO EFFIN' ANSWER ME OR NOT?!"

Cid's angry shout broke Donald and Sora out of their debate. Goofy scratched the back of his head sheepishly as Donald and Sora jumped, finally noticing the screen that had appeared in front of them. It seemed to be some sort of connection device because they could see Cid's face on the screen.

"Cid, when did you get here?" Sora asked surprised.

Chip and Dale shook their head even as Cid twitched. "I've been here since you guys pressed the button…"

 _So…he heard the whole conversation…Come to think of it, I thought somebody was trying to get our attention…_

Donald and Sora laughed bashfully as Goofy moved forward. "We got some more of them Ansem reports, Cid."

"Really?" Cid grinned, pulling out his metal toothpick. "That's swell. Now send them through."

Goofy nodded, pulling out the papers much to Sora's confusion.

How was Goofy meant to _send_ them through?

"It's called a scanner." Chip said from above Sora's head.

"Gee, I guess they don't have them on your island." Jiminy commented as Sora stared slack jawed at the duplicate copy of Ansem's reports now in Cid's hands.

"If only we had them on the island…." Sora muttered. "Then it would've been so much easier to copy that raft book…Heh, Kairi will probably be annoyed…"

 _Wonder what he's doing right now…Probably laying low somewhere…He's always been the smart one, after all…_

"You fellas coming back to Traverse Town?" Cid asked as he put the papers behind his desk before turning to the door. "Aerith, we got some more reports!"

The trio looked at each other before smiling back at the screen as Aerith was seen coming into the room.

"That's great." She smiled, grabbing the reports. "I'll get a start on decoding them."

"Oh, and we found part of Maleficent's plans!" Sora said quickly, making both Cid and Aerith become worried.

 _Collecting the princes of heart…To unlock a door…_

"You had a run in with her, kid?" Cid asked, looking over them for injuries.

"It was nothing major." Sora confessed. "She disappeared before we really had a chance to talk but one of her accomplices told us how they're kidnapping princes. Apparently, certain ones are the key to unlocking a door or something."

"A door?" Leon's voice cut through, even though they couldn't see him on the screen. "Did you find out anything else?"

"No…" Sora frowned, looking down. "And the prince of that world was also kidnapped…."

 _But we'll find him. We'll find Jasmoon and Ace and all the other princes who have been kidnapped!_

"Looks like things are more complicated than we thought." Leon sighed. "Alright, get back to Traverse Town quickly. We'll have the papers decoded soon. And hopefully some answers."

"Hey, has the king been to see you guys yet?" Donald interrupted before Cid could press the off button.

Leon finally came into view, a frown on his face as he stared at them. "No. What's wrong?"

"We didn't get a gummi piece for the next world…" Gooy looked down. "We were hoping he'd still be in Agrabah or would try and contact us because he hadn't given us a gummi piece yet."

"He's not here. Sorry." Aerith said sadly.

Both Donald and Goofy looked down sadly and Sora quickly jumped up, waving her hands in the air. "C-Come on guys! We've still got to seal the keyhole to Olympus Coliseum, remember? There's bound to be a navigation block there! Remember?!"

"I suppose…" Donald sighed before nodding. "Right! Sora, put your seatbelt back on! Let's get out of standby mode and continue on!"

"Great!" Cid grinned. "See you in-"

Cid's voice was drowned out as the gummi ship shook violently. Sora stumbled, crashing to the ground and groaning in pain. Red lights flashed as the gummi ship vibrated again, the noise deafening as some type of animal wail echoed around them. Chip and Dale grabbed onto the chair and her clothes, trying to keep her from crashing into any more things.

"SORA!"

Sora's eyes widened as she just managed to see under the screen in front of the board. A huge whale, at least a hundred times bigger than the very rare ones she'd see on Destiny Islands came towards them, mouth open as if to swallow them.

 _It's a monster whale!_

The last thing she heard were the frantic calls of Cid, Aerith and Leon as Donald cursed and Goofy yelped, both trying to get the gummi ship away from whatever was causing the problem. Because right at that moment, Donald had tried to swerve left and Sora whacked her head into the side of the dashboard.

She blacked out.

Flashback:

" _Kairi!" a young seven year old Sora shouted excitedly, running up to her best friend. "Guess what? Guess what?!"_

 _Kairi looked up from the shells he had been collecting on the beach, his blue eyes widening when Sora tripped and fell right towards him._

" _Omph!"_

 _Both seven year olds crashed to the ground, luckily unhurt because the beach sand had softened their fall._

" _What's wrong, Sora?" Kairi asked, tilting his head. "Wanna' help me collect sea shells to show Riku when he gets back from school?"_

 _Sora's eyes sparkled as if she was seriously about to accept before she shook her head. "Argh! That's not why I'm here! Riku said that there's a monster in the secret place!"_

" _A monster?" Kairi frowned, looking out to the play island. "But…we've never seen it before…"_

" _I know!" Sora nodded, folding her arms. "But Riku says it comes out only in the evening when we're not there!"_

" _Oh…" Kairi frowned before he brought his hands together, grinning. "Then let's go together!"_

" _Right!" Sora beamed. "I knew you'd wanna' come!"_

 _Later that evening…_

 _It took a lot of work to trick Sora's parents into letting Sora and Kairi go to bed early. Their plan was to pretend to be asleep and go out the window towards the play island._

" _When we prove there are no monsters, Riku's going to be so surprised!" Sora whispered to Kairi as they held hands and ran through the village towards the boats._

" _Yeah!" Kairi smiled. "And your mummy and daddy won't even notice that we're gone!"_

 _The water was rising and falling gently along the ocean, unusual for this time of night (sunset had already passed). The two of them hopped into the one man boat, being small enough that they could both fit easily._

" _Okay, I'll row this side and you row that side." Kairi said, grabbing the paddle and pushing as hard as he could._

 _After numerous failed attempts, the two kids found themselves stranded in the middle of the ocean between the play island and the main island._

" _Maybe we should paddle back…" Kairi said nervously as the wind began to pick up speed. "I don't like this…."_

 _Sora nodded, though she still felt put out that they couldn't see the monster in the secret place. "Okay…"_

" _Guys!"_

 _Both of the seven year olds looked up in surprise as they saw Riku coming towards them in another boat, trying his hardest to direct it towards them._

" _Riku!" Sora beamed, standing at the edge of the one man boat._

" _Sora, my mommy always tell me to stay away from the edge of the boat…." Kairi frowned and Sora looked back, a puzzled look on her face._

" _Why-WHA!" Sora yelped as she lost her balance and fell into the water._

 _Blinking rapidly, Sora opened her eyes under the water, her eyes already stinging from the salt water. Bubbles swam up around her and like she had been taught by her daddy, she followed the direction of the bubbles because that's where the surface of the water is._

 _Sora struggled to swim upwards, surprised at the force of the water. It was roaring in her ears as the cold bit at her skin and her clothes threatened to tug her down._

 _She had to make it though! They hadn't even seen the monster yet!_

 _And then Riku and Kairi were in front of her, tugging on her arms as they all helped each other swim to the surface of the water._

" _See, I told you so!" Kairi coughed as they all crawled into the one man boat (Riku included)._

" _What were you both doing?" Riku coughed, shaking his wet hair out._

" _We were gonna' see if there really was a monster in the secret place…" Sora frowned, plucking some seaweed off. "What're you doing here, Riku?"_

 _Riku blinked before turning away. "I ah…thought you might be coming. But…There isn't really a monster. I just wanted to come here at night."_

" _Oh…" Sora looked down sadly, even as Kairi nudged her._

" _C-Come on, we can still go check it out anyway!" Kairi grinned and Riku nodded._

" _Yeah. We'll never know staying here." Riku said and Sora nodded, grabbing a paddle._

" _Let's go!"_

 _The secret place…_

" _Are you sure there isn't a monster?" Kairi asked nervously, looking around._

" _Yeah. It's just the wind." Riku said. "The teacher told us last week that when there's a hollow shape in a cave, the wind makes a weird sound."_

" _Oh…" Kairi smiled relieved._

" _Too bad it's not a real monster." Sora sighed._

" _Well, if it was, think we could take it on?" Riku asked._

" _Of course!" Sora smiled. "But we'll have to protect Kairi cause' he's scared of monsters!"_

" _I am not…" Kairi frowned before putting a hand to his chest as he smirked. "Then I'll just have to protect you guys when you need help!"_

" _Hehe…" Sora put her hands behind her head. "Thanks! Now let's go back before our parents find out we're not really sleeping."_

" _Too late."_

 _The three kids froze as they heard the voice of Sora's daddy…and he sounded angry._

" _If you wanted a scary monster, all you had to do was make me angry." Sora's daddy scowled._

 _When Sora was grounded the next day, forbidden from sweets and found out Riku's and Kairi's parents had done the same, Sora had a new idea of what was scary. Monsters were nothing. Parents on the other hand…_

 _They were scary._

End flashback

Nobody's POV

The gummi ship disappeared inside the mouth of the humongous whale. It crashed into the opening of the whale's mouth, and like before when Sora didn't have her seat belt on, she was flung out the gummi ship.

She was propelled forward, head lolling and body unresponsive as she fell into the water in front of her. Sora didn't wake up as she fell in the water nor as she started sinking down under it.

Sora was going to drown.

Footsteps were heard coming closer and the next second, somebody's hand was grabbing Sora's arm and hoisting her out of the water effortlessly as he carried her in his arms towards the ground level of the giant whale, putting her safely on the ground.

The person stared at the unconscious brunette for a few seconds before walking off, hands clenched as hard as his heart did when he thought of Sora and her betrayal to him.

* * *

 **Me:** Okay, so I _wonder_ who that was?

 **Riku:** Seriously, why do you never show things from my POV?

 **Me:** It keeps everybody on their toes! But still, we could see you're still attached to Sora, even after she "betrayed" you.

 **Kairi:** You know, I'm kind of annoyed that I was scared of monsters as a kid.

 **Sora:** Bah. That's nothing. I know something that Riku's afraid of even till today-"

 **Riku:** You say anything and I'll tell Kairi a certain secret.

 **Sora:** *blushes* Y-You will not!

 **Kairi:** What secret?

 **Riku:** *looks away* Nothing.

 **Kairi:**...Riku looks pretty sad, Sora. What's with him?

 **Sora:**...Not sure. Rikuuuu? Heeeyy *pulls his cheeks*

 **Riku:** *snorts* Idiot. *ruffles her hair affectionately*

 **Me:**...hmm... I _wonder_ what that was about?


	34. A Conscience

**Me:** Okay people! I am a unicorn and that's why I'm eating dinner alone tonight.

 **Kairi:** You're as insane as ever...

 **Me:** Mwahaha! Heads up, ideas for KHII and (possibly) Chain of Memories are welcome! And what do people thing about Roxas? (I mean think about Ventus too and the appearence thingo).

 **Sora:** What are you talking about?

 **Me:** Something that's games away from you right now.

* * *

Riku's POV

"Why… Why did I do that?" he muttered, glaring at the floor. "She… betrayed me… Betrayed me and Kairi… All she cares about… is having fun…! I… shouldn't have saved her…!"

Riku could see Sora's _friends_ starting to stir and Riku had a brief thought to simply kill them. But he jerked back as if burnt.

"No… That's wrong… I can't… kill them… Even though…" he grimaced and unbeknown to him, darkness floated around him. "They're… It's their fault…"

Riku fell to his knees, putting a hand to his heart as it started to hurt because of the darkness.

"N-No…! I-I'm strong enough for this…! I-I… I have to be…!"

 _I'm not afraid of the darkness!_

An image of himself and Sora protecting Kairi when they were younger surfaced to his mind. They were always doing the same thing together but now… It was no longer Sora, only him.

"Why…? Why couldn't this simply be a prank…?" he grimaced before getting up unbalanced. "Kairi… Sora betrayed us…"

A brief image of Kairi's blank stare when Riku found the red head appeared. Kairi hadn't even reacted to Riku and the silver haired boy glared in the direction of Sora.

"You don't even care, Sora…!" Riku glared, watching as Sora woke up and whacked her head into the stupid duck. "You… are so stupid…!"

 _She… Doesn't understand anything…! But… Maybe…_

He could feel his hope coming back, that maybe this was really a big prank. Sora wouldn't really leave them, after all. Their childhoods together had to mean something, right? Riku took a deep breath, controlling the darkness within him. He wasn't afraid of the darkness.

Riku would use it to save Kairi.

And in his heart, he hoped Sora would come with him, that right now Sora was only too thick headed like usual to really understand Kairi needed their help.

"Because… best friends would do anything for each other…!" his voice faltered as a thought crossed his mind. "I… would do anything for you and Kairi..."

 _No matter what._

"I… would do anything for you."

Sora's POV

"Sora, wake up!" Goofy shook the girl slightly, smiling when Sora's eyes finally fluttered open. "Good Mornin'!"

Sora blinked and then yawned, rolling over onto her side, her back to Goofy.

 _It's too early for this…_

"Wake up, you lazy bum!"

Sora's eyes snapped open at the familiar voice of Kairi and she shot up, slamming her forehead right into Donald's by accident.

"Ow…" Sora moaned, clutching her head as she closed her eyes. "Damn it Donald…I thought you barely had anything in your brain…why is it so hard…?"

 _Damn it…and for a second there, I thought I heard Kairi…Oh , hang on a sec…I was dreaming about him and Riku…Guess it must've been a dream then…_

Sora froze as she felt Donald's ferocious glare on her, reminding her of her tactless comment once again.

"Heheh….I was…um…joking…?" Sora laughed awkwardly, yelping and dodging a weak thunder from Donald (he wouldn't _seriously_ hurt her probably…maybe…).

Of course, having jumped away from Donald's attack, Goofy had been on her left and so she had moved in the other direction…Slipping into the water she hadn't noticed earlier.

"Wak, wak, wak!" Donald laughed.

"Gawrsh Sora, you might be learnin' from us! Hyuk!" Goofy smiled, helping the now soaked-to-the-bone brunette out of the water. "Soon you'll be falling all over the place with us!"

Sora grinned weakly; scratching the back of her head as she finally looked around. "Thanks but I'll pass on that offer…I can't be falling everywhere if I want to protect everyone…"

 _But then again…Donald and Goofy_ _ **do**_ _seem to have extremely lucky things happen to them when they do fall by accident…Oh but now's not the time…_

"Guys, we'll start getting the ship back into working order!" Chip smiled, saluting them. "We can't fix it as well as that guy Cid but we can get it to last until he does fix it properly."

"Great but…We…got swallowed by the whale, right?" Sora asked as she looked around at the area they were in.

 _So how are we going to get out…?_

As they had landed just near the teeth of the whale, they had luckily avoided falling into the water further in. It didn't seem too deep but if any of them had been unconscious…

Sora shook her head, just glad that everyone was alright.

Wooden piles protruded from the water and Sora could even see a broken ship in the distance.

"This whale is called Monstro." Jiminy explained. "It's quite vicious and as you can see, eats ships and everything smaller than itself."

"What type of whale eats…Hey, the Dalmatian puppies!" Sora shouted as the puppies came out, looking a little battered but mostly uninjured as they followed Pluto. "It's good they're okay…"

"Even if it is their fault we had to go the long way back to Traverse Town…And ran into the whale because of that…" Donald muttered just as Sora nudged him.

"You're not helping…" Sora muttered and Goofy nodded, placing his hands on Donald's shoulders.

"That's right! We have ta' think positave!" Goofy laughed.

"It's POSI **TIVE**!" Donald shouted before shaking his head. "Ah phooey!"

Sora grinned. "Come on, let's go explore. We might as well have a look around. See if we can find another way out. Whales are meant to have holes on their head, right?"

"I…don't think that's quite right but-" Jiminy began before he shot forward, his tiny jaw dropping. "PINOCCHIO?!"

Everyone's head shot up to look in the same direction as Jiminy. A wooden puppet-one that _actually_ moved (but then again, in every single world Sora had been to, nothing was ever normal so…), held a gummi block in his hands as he jumped from ledge to ledge towards one of the half sunk ships further in the whale's giant mouth.

 _Is that a house on the ship wreck?_

"Let's follow him!" Jiminy said eagerly, jumping on Sora's shoulder.

"How do you know him, Jiminy?" Sora asked as they started swimming and Jiminy grinned from her shoulder.

"I'm his conscience." Jiminy explained. "I make sure he doesn't get into too much trouble but we were separated when our world was destroyed…"

"You lost your world too?" Sora's mouth dropped open as she stopped swimming. "I…I had no idea…"

Jiminy smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry. I've found Pinocchio and he seems fine. Not to mention I believe in you. That you can save the worlds and restore the lost ones."

Sora smiled and nodded, catching up with Donald and Goofy as they finally made it to ground again, heading for the boat.

 _Believing in friends…Heh. I've really made some good friends on my journey…Now if only Riku and Kairi were here with me…Grrr…! If only you hadn't run off Riku! We could have searched for Kairi together…But then again…It would probably take twice as long if we weren't looking in two different spots like we're doing now…_

Sora snapped out of her thoughts as she saw an old man accept the gummi piece off the puppet called Pinocchio.

"You think it'll help us get out of here?" the old man asked the puppet boy.

"Yes, father!" Pinocchio nodded eagerly.

The old man finally seemed to notice the newcomers. "Oh, were you eaten too?"

"…Yeah, you could say that…" Sora sweat dropped.

 _Somehow I think Riku and Kairi won't believe that…_

"I'm Geppetto, Pinocchio's father." The old man smiled, waving them over.

 _So they must've been eaten too then…_

"Wait a sec." Sora frowned. "You both came from the same world, right? Does that mean when you lost your world you arrived on the same new world?"

"Oh no." Geppetto shook his head. "I travelled all over looking for my boy. I'm very happy that we're together again. He's very precious to me."

 _So he managed to find somebody he cared about…_

A small weight seemed to lift off of Sora's shoulders. If another person could do it, then _she_ could as well. She'd find Riku (again) and Kairi. She'd just keep looking until she did find them.

"Well, no doubt you three are tired." Geppetto smiled as he moved the gummi block. "How about we give our three guests something to eat and drink, right Pinocchio?"

There was no answer and Sora frowned, looking around the ship.

"AAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Everyone jumped at the scream of the young boy, turning to see a heartless (it had the symbol on it) with Pinocchio in its mouth.

The heartless was big and seemed to have a cage as its stomach…a cage that Pinocchio was currently caught in.

"Pinocchio!" Geppetto shouted, running forward without a second thought. "He's my little boy! Let go of him!"

Sora gasped, quickly running forward and pushing Geppetto out of the way of the heartless's whip-like tentacles. Even so, she wasn't fast enough to avoid them herself and a crack was heard as the heartless's attack struck her.

"URGH!" Sora shouted, grabbing her leg but relaxing slightly as there was no drawing of blood (this time anyway).

Her leg stung where the whip tentacle had hit her but she stood back up quickly, helping the old man up and dragging him back to the ship, despite his protesting.

"Don't worry!" Sora promised, grabbing his hands. "We'll get your son back."

"I…" the old man hesitated before nodding, swallowing heavily. "Please…"

Sora nodded, turning back to Donald and Goofy who had been holding the heartless off…just before it turned and ran away, Pinocchio still trapped inside it.

 _We can't lose it!_

"Follow it!" Donald shouted and the three of them gave chase.

The heartless jumped into what appeared to be the throat of the whale.

 _I won't let you get away!_

Jumping up and following, Sora felt her footsteps falter as she saw the heartless stop, open its mouth and give it's prize (Pinocchio) to a very familiar silver head.

"…Riku…?" Sora whispered, horror curling in her as the heartless continued to not attack Riku.

 _This must be some type of mistake…_

It was as if…Riku was controlling the heartless…But that meant he was working with darkness…working with Maleficent…Hurting all the people Sora, Donald and Goofy had saved…

"Hey Sora." Riku smirked, though his eyes were cold and uncaring, so unlike the usual Riku who smiled at her with warmth. "Still running around and showing off that keyblade?"

Sora looked down at the keyblade in her hands, confused. "What do you mean? I've told you, I've been searching all over the worlds for you and Kairi-"

"Cut the crap." Riku scoffed as he picked up Pinocchio before placing the unconscious puppet against the wall. "Do you even want to save Kairi?"

 _What…? What type of question is that?!_

"Of course I do!" Sora shouted, tensing as Riku moved back towards the heartless.

 _I've been searching in every single world! How could he think I_ _ **wasn't**_ _looking for them?!_

Riku scoffed again, turning to the puppet. "A puppet losing its heart to the heartless…maybe it holds the key to helping Kairi…"

Sora froze, eyes flickering to Riku's face.

 _Impossible._

Riku turned back to Sora, holding out a hand as if offering her to take it.

 _We were all supposed to be fine._

"So, are you going to help me get Kairi's heart back or not?" Riku scowled, hand still extended just like back on Destiny Islands before their world was destroyed. "Is Kairi or this puppet more important?"

 _ **Geppetto shook his head. "I travelled all over looking for my boy. I'm very happy that we're together again. He's very precious to me."**_

Sora's keyblade appeared back in her hands and Riku's scowl got more pronounced as he jumped back, realising Sora wasn't going to work with him.

 _I don't know what's going through your head Riku but…_

"Kairi is one of my best friends…" Sora began ( _and so are you_ ). "But…if he's really lost his heart, I'm going to save him _without_ hurting anybody else, Riku!"

"I see the way it is." Riku looked away, a shattered look on his face that made Sora's heart clench painfully.

 _I know Riku's wrong but…it still hurts that he thinks I'm betraying him…The darkness is obviously messing with him…He talks wrong, he looks cruel and he acts uncaring…Riku…_

"So you'd choose to fight me for a puppet that has no heart?" Riku glared coldly at her and Sora glared back.

"Heart…or no heart…" Sora whispered as Donald and Goofy watched the exchange worriedly. "At least he has a conscience!"

 _Why is this happening?_

"Conscience?" Riku frowned at her.

"You might not hear it but it's loud and clear…" Sora said more confidently, hoping she could get through to him. "and it's telling me you're on the wrong side! You're hurting people, Riku…! You're using the darkness and causing so many others pain and worry!"

 _I know Leon and the others don't really show it but they were devastated over the loss of their world…Since the destruction of our world….Riku…how many worlds have you caused to be destroyed…? How many like the gang in Traverse Town have you caused to feel devastated over the loss of their world…?_

Riku scowled again. "I'm starting to wonder if we even knew you. You don't even care about us, do you?"

"I do care!" Sora shouted back, frustration bubbling in her like a raging volcano.

 _I care so much it hurts!_

"But…It's because I care that my heart is telling me you're wrong, Riku!" Sora shouted.

"Is it…?" Riku scoffed, "Fine. You and your friends can continue hunting down the heartless. I'll save Kairi myself."

 _No! Riku!_

A dark portal appeared behind Riku and Sora lunged forward, arm extended as she tried to reach him in vain.

 _What are you thinking? It's like we're hundreds of miles apart instead of just a few metres! I can't lose you here! Not when I know what's really happening with you! The darkness is playing with your thoughts!_

"You can't save Kairi." Riku said coldly as the portal vanished with him inside it.

Sora clenched her fists as she looked around, hoping for some sign of Riku but knowing he was already long gone and out of her reach.

"SORA!"

Donald's shout was the one thing that warned her that there was still a heartless nearby. Doing a flip, Sora landed back near her friends as the heartless waved its tentacle arms around like a whip.

 _I don't have time for this! Riku…! Riku is…!_

Sora launched forward, trying to focus on the battle instead of the danger one of her best friends' was in and the potential heartless status of her other best friend.

 _Kairi…what should I do?_

* * *

 **Me:** Ze' cat iz' out of ze' bag!

 **Riku:** I have a question.

 **Me:** Go ahead, Riku.

 **Riku:** Do you have any air freshener? That whale's insides is smelly...


	35. Maleficent's Plan

**Me:** Hello everyone! In regards to sequels, I will be writing Kingdom Hearts II first. The rest are all possibilities but I haven't actually thought of doing them. Mainly because one, I don't have the games, and two, I don't have time to watch them on youtube.

 **Sora:** You know, I'm kind of bored now...

 **Me:**...go eat fried eggs then.

 **Kairi:** But Sora likes fish more...

 **Riku:**...why are you all talking about food anyway? This is author notes, not cafe order notes.

* * *

"Guys, come on!" Sora shouted, swinging her keyblade to destroy the heartless trying to come at her. "We have to leave now!"

"Right!" Donald shouted as he grabbed Pinocchio's hand.

Pinocchio had woken up halfway through the battle to Jiminy crying for him to wake up, thankfully not having lost his heart like Riku thought.

 _At least we protected Geppetto's son…Riku…Wait! Stupid Sora! Focus on the present situation!_

Fire raged behind them as they ran towards the mouth of Monstro, intent on getting inside the gummi ship. Monstro was no doubt in a deal of pain thanks to the fire behind them as Sora and Mushu (having been summoned) had done a joint attack with their fire again, destroying the heartless in one go but also inflicting damage on Monstro as well, the flames consuming the inside of the whale like there was oil everywhere.

 _We have to get out of here!_

"Geppetto!" Sora shouted as the old man ran up to them, relief on his face despite the shaking ground-whale-whatever.

"Thank goodness!" he smiled, hugging Pinocchio. "We have to leave now! Monstro is going to chuck us out very soon…Though there's not enough room for more than four people…"

Sora looked at Donald and Goofy, opening her mouth to speak and tell Geppetto they were fine but Geppetto beat her to the punch.

"Very well." He said solemnly. "You three, please take my son with you. I will stay here and-"

"Thanks." Sora smiled warmly, shaking her head. "But we've got a vehicle to use ourselves."

 _You're a good friend, Geppetto._

"I…very well then." The old man smiled, surprising Sora by hugging her. "Thank you for saving my son. Thank you for saving the light in my life."

Sora grinned bashfully as Geppetto hugged Donald and Goofy to (much to the former's embarrassment and the latter's happiness).

Monstro's mouth started to open and Sora yelped, knowing they were about to be spat out. "Come on!"

"Hurry!" Chip squeaked, opening the airlock.

Sora, Donald and Goofy (plus Jiminy) just managed to get on the gummi ship and close the airlock.

And then Monstro spat them out of its mouth, flying away into space.

The gummi ship flipped around for a bit and Sora fell numerous times as she tried to get to her seat while tripping due to the turbulence and stray Dalmatian puppies alike (one even managed to fall on her face).

"Urgh…" Donald muttered as he finally gained control of the ship. "That's the last time I let Pluto bring puppies aboard the ship!"

Sora didn't bother replying as she herself was nursing a bruise to her face where she had whacked into her seat after yet another jolt in the ship.

"Let's just go back…" Chip muttered. "That Cid guy's gonna' have his hands full fixing up this mess…"

Traverse Town:

"Pluto, take the Dalmatian puppies to their parents' house." Donald grumbled to the yellow dog, who barked in affirmation and led the way with a dozen puppies following behind him like ducklings.

"Let's go…" Sora frowned, walking ahead and ignoring the fatigue in her body.

"Yeah but…are you okay, Sora?" Goofy asked and Sora paused, surprised.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Sora nodded, frowning. "Why?"

"Your pal…He's working with the heartless…" Goofy put a hand to his lip. "And your other pal…If what that Riku fella said was true…your other pal's lost his heart…"

Sora clenched her fists, looking down at the cobble ground. "Riku…That Riku you saw…He's been influenced by the darkness…He made a stupid choice…"

" _ **Sora." Riku smiled at her-though this wasn't his normal smile. This smile was one of cold indifferent, of excitement and a dark eagerness-shown through his eyes that seemed to glint with darkness. "Come with me."**_

"He's made a mistake…" Sora continued, looking back at Donald and Goofy as if willing them to understand Riku _wasn't_ a bad person. "I know he looked bad…And that he's working with the heartless but…"

"Don't worry Sora." Goofy smiled, putting a hand on the teen's shoulder. "We understand. Riku's just gotta' see he's doing wrong."

"That's right!" Donald nodded in support, smiling at Sora. "We'll explain things to him!"

Sora smiled, wiping her eyes that had started to water a bit (she wasn't _crying_!). "Right."

And then Sora grinned a little. "and if he doesn't want to listen…Well, me and him are long overdue for our rematch…"

 _I'll definitely explain things to you Riku. Because I know you would never do this. Your heart is too strong. You've let the darkness in and it is only consuming more of you each time you use it. So much of the Riku I know has already disappeared but…We'll get you back for sure!_

"What about ya' other friend though?" Goofy asked as they started walking again.

"I…I'm not sure." Sora admitted. "I…I don't know what to do…"

 _I felt like Kairi's been waiting for me this whole time, right beside me but…_

"You're all okay!" Aerith rushed forward, face breaking out into a smile as she saw the trio walking into the first district.

"Aerith…?" Sora said, perplexed at seeing the young woman waiting for them near the gates of Traverse Town's first district (and Sora was sure it was very late). "What are you doing here?"

"We were worried!" Aerith frowned. "You were cut off suddenly and we couldn't get in contact with you three."

"We were swallowed by a whale." Goofy explained and Donald nodded.

"It took a while to get back because it was hard to smile." Donald said and Sora nodded, remembering how the gummi ship wouldn't move because there was no 'fuel' (i.e. smiles) to run the ship.

"Yeah…"

 _What can I do about Kairi…? I know I said I'd find a way to get his heart back without hurting others but…where to start…?_

"Let's go back to Cid's house." Aerith said helpfully as she led them towards the third district. "It seems we have a lot to discuss. And we've translated Ansem's reports."

Sora paused, eyes widening in realisation.

 _Of course! Ansem's reports! They're bound to have information about how to get somebody's heart back!_

It seemed Donald and Goofy realised too for they both smiled at Sora.

Cid's house, with the whole gang present (including Cloud):

"So your friend is using the darkness?" surprisingly it was Cloud who spoke but then again, it probably wasn't that surprising because he'd also tried to use the darkness to help himself.

"Yeah…Heh." Sora laughed weakly. "I'm a little worried an' all but…We'll show Riku that what he is doing is wrong. And bring some common sense back to him!"

"Right!" Donald smiled and Goofy nodded.

"Heh." Cid smirked at her. "That's the spirit kid."

Sora nodded, just as she remembered her plans to ask about the Ansem reports encase there was details about one losing their heart.

"So what did Ansem's reports say anyway?" Sora asked, eager to find out _how_ she was going to help Kairi.

"The pieces of Maleficent's plans we were missing." Leon scowled darkly.

Sora looked to Aerith, waiting for a more detailed explanation.

"You remember how Maleficent's accomplice said something about a door unlocked by seven princes of heart?" Aerith asked, handing the report over. "The reports that were in his possession detailed _what_ he meant by that."

"and it ain't good!" Yuffie added.

Sora frowned, opening up the report and holding it at arm's length so Donald and Goofy could read it too.

 _ **Opening the door to the world's heart causes its walls to crumble. These fragments are seen as shooting stars. This explains why these "gummi blocks" can travel freely to other worlds. I know the catalyst of the collapse, the appearance of the Heartless. However, it will take time to search out the worlds' doors, and to retrieve each heart. Furthermore, the doors can be locked using a Keyblade making the heart forever unattainable. I must take action before the wielder of this key appears in this world. If the princes and the Keyblade are connected, they should resonate. I have chosen a boy. I don't know if he holds the princes' powers, but I will find out. He may lead me to the key bearer. I shall set him free and observe.**_

 _ **The body is gone; the heart should have returned to the Heartless. And yet, nothing. This one is unlike any other. Its memories remain, and it has yet to take the form of a Heartless. A close eye must be kept on the situation. Much is still unknown. To get to the realm of Darkness, one must go through the doors of Kingdom Hearts, the place where the world's hearts connect. The princes of heart hold the key. Beyond this world is a place in which Darkness reigns. (Details shall be archived in a separate report) There are many worlds in existence, some of which we know nothing about. The world in which we live. The realm of Darkness. The realm of Light. And the world in between. Wherein lies true nirvana?**_

"Ansem…Ansem was bad…" Sora muttered, frowning as she realised he had intentionally released somebody's heart to experiment on them.

"We're not sure if this was him though." Aerith frowned. "This report…It was recently written."

Sora frowned. "But Ansem would've lost his heart when he threw himself into darkness, right…? So…think this could be Maleficent's doing…?"

This part of the report could've been written by Maleficent.

"Could be." Yuffie nodded, leaning back on her chair. "But now we know she's trying to open the doors to Kingdom Hearts to get to the Realm of Darkness."

"And she's been kidnapping all those princes of heart to unlock it…" Sora frowned, thinking of Ace and Jasmoon. "And letting the heartless consume the worlds' hearts so she could have more power…Do…do you think Jasmoon and Ace are okay…?"

"Well, I'm sure they're not harmed if that's the case." Aerith frowned. "They're important to her goal, as bad as that sounds."

"I guess…" Sora frowned, turning to Donald and Goofy. "I wonder if your king has found any other parts of the reports. Maybe he's even found the princes of heart…"

 _Maybe Ansem wrote something else about the heartless before he lost his heart…_

"Who knows?" Donald frowned.

"Well, either way…." Sora said, unfolding her arms and grinning. "We'll stop Maleficent! There's no way we'll let her control the Realm of Darkness…That's what she's planning, right?"

"Probably-yes." Leon frowned. "She's bent on world domination anyway."

"So, I'm guessing after that whale fiasco, ya' need me to fix the ship?" Cid asked, breaking the silence that had descended.

"Yep." Donald grimaced. "It's really bad…"

"In the meantime, you three should get some rest." Aerith said to them after seeing their battered appearance.

"Oh yeah, are you guys participating in the Pegasus Cup at the Coliseum tomorrow?" Yuffie asked.

"I…guess so." Sora admitted. "I mean, we'll be going there to check for the keyhole and a new gummi block world coordinate so…it wouldn't hurt to train a bit more…"

 _After all, I have a feeling I'm going to have to beat Riku to stop him before I actually talk some sense into him…Might as well get some training in…_

"Gawrsh." Goofy frowned. "Then we'd better get snoozing!"

Sora nodded, thoughts on Riku, Kairi and Maleficent swimming in her head.

* * *

 **Me:** We are getting closer to the end! Excited! EXCITED! EXCITEDDDDDDD!


	36. A Small Break

**Me:** Apologies for updating a _month_ later! In all fact, I had exams and just needed a break from everything. Anyhow, I'll be updating three chapters today to make up for it so please don't bite my head off.

 **Sora:** Great! You're back! Everyone, let's get into positions!

* * *

 _Shing!_

Sora's keyblade struck Leon's gunblade, both weapons pushing against each other in an effort to throw their opponent off balance. Despite putting all her effort into trying to force Leon's gunblade away, Sora found her own strength much more feeble compared to Leon as she started to be pushed back and nearly topple over.

 _If I can't to that…_

Drawing backwards, Sora smirked as she saw Leon stumble, not having expected the 'charge into battle' Sora to pull away. Sora moved forward to claim her opening chance…and then her eyes widened as she saw Leon smirk.

Sora quickly ducked against the buster sword from her side, grimacing as she began dodging against Cloud's attacks, barely being able to land in any hits as she was put on the defensive.

 _Damn it! I forgot again to keep focused! I can't get cocky!_

Sora gritted her teeth as her blade connected with Cloud's, trying to use pure physical force to push him off balance but once again failing just like with Leon.

 _I can't use the same tactics twice so..._

Sora quickly jumped out of the way as she cast the small fire spell right in front of her.

Cloud's eyes widened before he quickly flashed out of the way, a small smirk on his lips as everyone caught a breather.

"We'll stop there for now." Leon frowned. "The Pegasus Cup is in four hours and you still have to look for the keyhole, Sora."

"Right…" Sora nodded, frowning as she put her keyblade away.

 _I hope I'm strong enough to defeat Maleficent…To defeat Riku…_

"You did good." Cloud said from beside her as they wall walked back to the inn, Sora's hands behind her head again.

"But defeating you in the coliseum was a one off…" Sora frowned, referring to the fact that she was struggling to defeat him still.

 _I just caught Cloud by surprise…That was the only reason I defeated him…_

"You still won with your own skills." Leon interjected. "No matter how strong an opponent is, all somebody needs is to catch them off balance to change the tides of the battle."

"I…guess so…" Sora nodded, figuring it _did_ make sense.

"Besides, you're using your brain more which already means you're showing signs of improvement." Leon nodded, a smile on his face as Sora's face twisted a little.

"I…should take that as a compliment, right Leon?" Sora asked, frowning at the 'using your brain more' comment.

"…Yeah."

Back at the inn

Sora grinned as Pluto handed her some more pages from Merlin's book. "You're a really amazing dog, you know that?"

Pluto barked happily before he turned and ran off to probably go do whatever he normally does when running off.

"I'd better go hand these to Merlin…" Sora muttered, briefly wondering about the rest of Ansem's reports that she hadn't collected yet. "I hope they help me find a way to get Kairi's heart back…Riku…"

 _I wonder…even if we do explain things to him…Will he hate me? Will we…never talk to each other again…?_

"…You okay?"

Sora looked up, surprised to find Leon by the door. She thought she'd been alone when Donald and Goofy had left to buy some potions and other items. He must've just walked in.

"Yeah." Sora nodded, frowning again. "Just…thinking, I guess."

"About your friend Riku?" Leon asked, coming into the room.

"Yeah…" Sora swallowed a bit as the thought entered her brain again. "What if…What if he doesn't want to talk to me again after Kairi's heart is restored? What if… What if the darkness in his heart isn't the only thing that's made him annoyed at me? What if he hates me?"

Sora swallowed heavily again.

It was hard to know her best friend was acting like she was worth nothing to him, even if he wasn't himself. She was still worried that once he was back to normal, he'd still hate her anyway.

"Sora." Leon frowned, looking distinctly uncomfortable as he scrambled for words. "While…while your friend is doing it wrong, I…don't think he hates you."

Sora looked up miserably, as if to say something but Leon held a hand up to continue speaking.

"You're both trying to save your other friend and right now, that's all that matters, right?" Leon asked and Sora nodded.

"Yeah but…" Sora frowned again.

"Judging from what you say about Riku, he's a smart kid." Leon said, looking Sora in the eyes. "He will most likely come talk to you after Kairi's been saved anyway to get the whole story. He's bound to see something strange about everything."

Sora looked at the ground again, a weight seemingly lifting off her chest as she digested the information.

 _He is pretty smart…And we've never stayed mad at each other for long…Leon's right…he's right!_

"Thanks Leon." Sora grinned brightly and Leon nodded.

"You're strong Sora." Leon looked ahead before walking on.

"Hehe." Sora grinned before once more picking up the pages from Merlin's book. "Well, I'm off to deliver the pages to Merlin! Tell Donald and Goofy I'll be back in ten minutes!"

With that, Sora rushed ahead of him and zipped out the inn towards the magician's house.

Merlin's house:

"Splendid!" Merlin beamed at Sora as he grabbed the pages from her hand. "Why, this is all of the pages from the book! I must admit, this is amazing!"

"Thank Pluto." Sora smiled as Merlin grabbed the book (it was lying on the book stand) and cast some sort of spell.

The pages glowed briefly for a second before they zoomed out of Merlin's hands, shooting towards the book and being sucked into it.

And Sora went along with them.

Merlin stood stunned for a few seconds, now alone in the empty cavern. The book closed itself and lay innocently back on the bookstand, despite having just sucked in a human being into its pages.

"And I was sure I'd cast the spell correctly…" Merlin muttered as he picked up the book and tried to open it but failing. "Oh dear…Hmm…I'd better go tell Leon and the others…"

Merlin disappeared in a puff of smoke, leaving the mysterious book behind.

After a few seconds, the blank cover of the book began to form a picture of an orange-yellow bear, a small pink piglet, an orange tiger that bounced on its tail…and Sora, smiling and walking along with them.

* * *

 **Me:** As everyone has no doubt saw, I am not writing the Pooh Bear world. Partly because I never actually enjoyed it myself and partly because it would be awkward to write something like that. But if people really want it written, I may add it as a bonus chapter at the end of the story (kind of like how the manga did it).


	37. A Small Break Part 2

**Me:** We have another break chapter where Sora does another Coliseum competition! Next chapter in a few hours so look forward to it! Any requests or ideas for improvements?

* * *

"I still can't believe you were swallowed by a book…" Donald muttered as the trio walked into the gummi ship to head to the Coliseum to compete in the Pegasus Cup tournament and search the world for the keyhole (and hopefully a navigation gummi left by the king).

"I'd like to hear all about it!" Jiminy jumped on Sora's shoulder, his miniature journal in his hands as Sora finally sat down in her seat, a small smile on her face.

"Well…When I first entered the book, I was _on_ the page….But as I started walking, the scenery around me changed and morphed into a forest of some sort. And that was when I found Pooh..." Sora began recounting her tale, feeling a lot calmer than before.

 _Pooh and the others have confidence I can find save my friends…And now…I need to have confidence too…I'm going to get Riku back to normal…And find out what's really going on with Kairi…Just you wait…_

"Sora, get up!"

Sora's eyes snapped open and a burst of adrenaline rushed through her as she launched off from the ground, narrowly avoiding the tip of Leon's gunblade near her which would have meant she lost.

 _If I'd have stayed on the ground while he had it pointing at my neck…Phil would have called the match…and Leon would have won…_

"I won't lose!" Sora glared as Leon merely raised an eyebrow, as if to antagonise her.

 _But I won't fall for that!_

And so, Sora waited for Simba (he had called her to get up) to come near her before she began her counter attack. "Let's go!"

"Right!" Simba rushed forward, a roar escaping him as he lunged at Leon to allow Sora to weave her own attacks in between his own.

The battle was to Sora's advantage. Even though both Donald and Goofy were unconscious, Yuffie had been taken out as well. And with Sora facing off against Leon with Simba at her side, she had the advantage in numbers.

 _Shing!_

"Now if I only had the advantage in skill…" Sora muttered as she was thrown back a bit from Leon who quickly deflected her attack in time to dodge Simba's claws.

Of course, Simba suddenly flashed white and Sora's eyes widened as he disappeared.

 _Damn! His summon time limit!_

Sora was on her own.

After…

"Don't worry Sora." Goofy put a hand on Sora's shoulder. "We can look for the keyhole while Leon continues in the ranks."

"Or you could cheer Leon on." Yuffie reminded her (Yuffie had been disqualified as she had been unconscious when the match ended). "There is some great food selling in the stands."

Sora sighed before getting up. "I think I'll look for the keyhole. No use crying over spilt milk, after all."

Donald smiled. "You've really matured since we first met you, Sora."

Sora poked her tongue out as she began walking to Phil, who was looking over his list while everybody had a half an hour break before the final match.

"Sora." Phil looked up, a frown on his face as he came towards her. "I believe you've got the skill to go on. But you have to prove it to me."

Sora looked at Donald and Goofy, her eyebrows knitting together. "…'go on'…?"

"To participate in the next tournament." Phil waved his hand dismissively. "I need to go through protocol and all that. You had a tough break but seeing as you defeated Hercules…I _know_ you'll do fine in the other tournaments."

Yuffie grinned from beside Sora. "In other words, Phil wants you in the next tournament because the public expects you to be there."

Phil scowled at Yuffie before admitting defeat. "Yeah…That's about it. Anyhow, I need you to complete a challenge that even Hercules couldn't complete."

Sora frowned. "Uh…How long will this take? Cause' I've got to do some things…"

"Just a minute or two." Phil said, pointing to the heavy tonne block near the corner of the room. "You need to move that."

Sora sweat dropped. "You…do realise I couldn't move it when I first met you…What makes you think I can move it now?"

Phil smirked. "Because you're stronger now, kid. So hurry up. I ain't got all day. Some of us have the final match to prepare for."

Sora sweat dropped.

 _This…is a waste of time…But still…I can't deny wanting to enter the next tournament…If Phil really thinks I'm stronger…Which I am…then participating in more matches will make me even more stronger!_

"GGRRRRRRRRRRRR!" Sora huffed as she pushed with all her might against the block…

Which didn't move an inch.

 _This…is useless…_

Sora sighed as she leaned against the block, seeing Phil who was discussing something with one of the fighters.

 _Why does he think I can…? No… I can't give up! I…_

Sora grinned, an idea coming to her as she turned to Donald and Goofy. "Mind giving me a hand?"

 _Phil never said I couldn't have help…!_

"I don't believe it!" Phil shouted and Sora twitched from the now moved position of the block. "You actually managed to move it!"

"What…?!" Sora glared. "What happened to 'I know you can do it', huh?!"

Phil looked away awkwardly. "N-Never mind! Anyway, this is great! I'll sign you up for the Hades tournament in two days, right? With Donald and Goofy?"

Sora looked at Donald and Goofy, both who nodded back to her. "Yep!"

"Great!" Phil smiled before his attention was brought to the roar of the crowd outside. "Well, I'm off to referee the final match. Don't forget your training!"

Sora nodded, still elated over yet more proof that she had improved so much. Especially because Hercules, the strongest person (and an acknowledged hero) couldn't do what she and her friends had just accomplished.

 _I think…I am strong enough to defeat Riku…and Maleficent…And to save Kairi…I have my friends beside me to give me the extra strength I lack alone…_

"SORA!" Donald shouted and Sora spun around, seeing the floor where the block had been previously starting to glow.

The keyblade appeared in Sora's hands.

 _Is this…?_

A keyhole shape appeared on the ground and a grin broke its way onto Sora's face as she aimed the keyblade, a beam of light shooting from it and locking the keyhole.

"A navigation gummi!" Sora shouted in glee as Goofy quickly picked up the small green gummi.

 _We were right! There was a gummi here!_

"Well, now all we can do is wait until the final match is over." Goofy smiled. "When Cid goes back with the gang, we can ask him to install the gummi piece and we can be off, hyuk!"

Sora nodded.

 _Look out Maleficent…If we see you in the next world…We're going to kick your butt! And…I guess if Riku won't listen…I'll kick his butt too!_

Sora smiled at Donald and Goofy before walking to the public stands to watch Leon fight in the final match. "Come on. Let's find some seats."

 _I might as well watch some fighting techniques instead of sit around waiting._

* * *

 **Me:** Hope this isn't too boring but next chapter picks up with the plotline- _I promise!_


	38. Never-Land: Why Land When You Can Fly?

**Me:** We're up to Neverland

* * *

"Be careful." Aerith handed them an arm full of potions.

"Err…" Cid sweat dropped as he stared at Aerith. "Darlin', don't you think that's a bit too much of potions?"

The whole gang was outside the First District doors to see the trio off as they were about to depart for the next world (Cid had installed the navigation gummi pronto when they got back to Traverse Town).

"They may very well go up Maleficent again." Leon frowned, his arms folded. "If the King is directing you towards her with his navigation pieces, you can be sure you'll be facing her or somebody in league with her in the next world."

"Right." Sora nodded, pocketing two of the potions and giving the others to Donald to look after. "But don't worry. We'll stop her."

Leon nodded to Sora and with that, the trio went onto the gummi ship, ready for the battle ahead.

An hour later…

"Sora, to your left!" Donald squawked and Sora grimaced as her head was thrown forward a bit in her seat (though luckily she had her seatbelt on so she wasn't falling around the place).

"I'm on it!" Sora shouted, already moving the control stick and shooting the laser at the heartless ships following them. "What's going on anyway?! There is way too many for this to be normal!"

Goofy was having a hard time destroying the heartless ships on his side but he turned to Donald and Sora with a dawning expression on his face. "Gawrsh! What if Maleficent is onto us?"

… _Of course! She's trying to keep us away from her!_

"Let's –WHAA!" Sora yelped as the gummi ship shook with a loud explosion.

"Guys, heartless have infiltrated the ship!" Chip squeaked out.

That was the only warning Sora got before the heartless were upon her. Grunting out a thanks when Dale unbuckled her seatbelt to allow her access to fight, Sora brought her keyblade down and started taking out the heartless, one by one, as Donald continued to try and steer the ship.

"WHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAKKKKKKKKKKK!" Donald screamed as the gummi ship lights flickered off and Sora groaned as she was thrust into pitch black darkness, unable to see the heartless.

 _I guess…I have to rely on instinct..THERE!_

Sora yelped, barely able to dodge one of the heartless's swords. Flipping backwards, Sora nearly lost her balance as the gummi ship started taking a deep dive and a loud alarm was heard through the area.

 _We can't lose! Not here!_

"I need light…" Sora muttered as she heard Goofy yelp as a heartless (no doubt) attacked him. "Light…Fire…Of course! MUSHU-I SUMMON YOU!"

Mushu's loud vouce was cut off abruptly as Sora grabbed his snake like body and threw him away from the incoming heartless.

"SORA!" he shouted alarmed before fire erupted from his mouth. "Come on girl! Let's show them what's-AHHH!"

Mushu stopped speaking as one of the heartless positioned it's sword in front of his neck.

"MUSHU!" Sora yelped as she tried to blink back the haziness of her mind.

 _I'm pretty sure I was hit in the back of the head with a stray pipe from the gummi ship…_

"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAKKKKKKKK!"

Donald's squawk was the only thing that alerted everyone to brace themselves. The gummi ship shuddered for a few heart-stopping seconds.

And then it stopped completely.

A loud bang caused the alarms to shriekd even louder but Sora was dazzled from the noise of the blast impacting the gummi ship.

 _We… can't… die… here!_

But a heartless grabbed her hands, forcing them behind her back.

"Sora! Sora!" Mushu was yelling but luckily he had the sense to move out of the way of the heartless, darting up between the pipes so the heartless couldn't get him.

The last thing Sora saw before she was shoved into a dark portal (by the heartless) was Donald and Goofy being dragged by the heartless into another portal.

And then she came out the other side of the portal onto a ship.

"Riku?!" Sora's mouth dropped open as she saw her familiar silver-haired best friend standing at the end of the ship, his back to her.

"Ah Sora." He smirked (once again, his face was devoid of any warmth). "Nice to see you again."

 _This is no time for games!_

"Where are Donald and Goofy?" Sora glared at him. "Riku, I'm serious! You don't know what you're doing! The darkness is messing with your heart! And sooner or later, you're going to lose it to the heartless!"

Sora had been preparing her speech for a while, knowing Riku could be very stubborn when he wanted to be. As such, she needed to be twice as convincing as she normally would be.

Riku's eyebrows knitted together before he seemed to remember who had the advantage and he scoffed. "As if. My heart's too strong. But anyway… Shouldn't you be asking… About him?"

Riku moved aside to reveal…

"KAIRI!" Sora's heart nearly leapt in her throat and she had to physically restrain herself from moving forward. "You found him!"

"No help from you." Riku sneered.

"Riku…" Sora frowned again, trying to ignore the bubble of frustration that crept up within her.

She had to deal with this carefully and maturely… she had to choose her words with extreme caution.

"Of course, you've always been second rate so it's no surprise."

Sora snapped, hurt beyond words as she ran forward to attack Riku… no… the stranger in front of her. "This just proves it! You definitely _aren't_ Riku! He would never say what you just did!"

Riku was about to say something when somebody took matters into their own hands.

"Not so fast, lass." A pirate with a red coat and fluffy feathered hat walked up to Sora, waving his hooked arm in front of her face. "You'd better watch where you go aboard my vessel."

Sora had to bite back the flinch as the heartless appeared behind her, restraining her once more.

She was completely at the mercy of Ri-… _the stranger_ -who seemed intent on hating her and causing harm to everybody around him. "Riku! You have to stop! Using the heartless will only cause them to steal your heart!"

'Not a chance." Riku scoffed. "My heart is too strong."

 _That's not what happened to Ursula or Jafar or Clayton! I've seen it happen too many times! I can't… He can't lose his heart like Kairi… Kairi…_

"Riku, we can save Kairi _without_ hurting others!" Sora tried pleading with him but Riku only scoffed making her even more desperate to get him to snap out of whatever thought process he was in. "I promise you! I'll find a way to help Kairi without hurting anyone else!"

There was a tense silence and for a second, Sora dared to hope she got through to him but Riku merely scoffed again.

"Put her with the others." Riku commanded the heartless before she could speak. "Oh? And Sora…"

Sora dragged her eyes reluctantly off of Kairi's motionless form, turning to Riku who shot an icy smirk to her. "This is a new ability I picked up."

Sora's eyes widened as her shadow rose to reveal a perfect copy of her (down to the height and even every part of her spiked hair). Except for it's completely black appearance and glowing yellow eyes. It looked like a heartless version of her.

Riku was subtly threatening her.

Riku's chilling gaze was the last thing she saw before she was dragged below deck to presumably where they were keeping Donald and Goofy.

Sometime later…

"He was motionless…" Sora sighed, running a hand through her hair. "But he was _definitely_ breathing… I suppose all we have to do now is talk to Kairi and see if he really has lost his heart… And stop Maleficent and find the king, of course!"

"Hyuk! That about sums it up!" Goofy laughed joyfully.

"Um…" the other boy in the cabin sweat dropped at them, (Peter Pan figured his green appearance would have made it extremely easy for them to notice him so why were they ignoring him?). "Aren't you guys going to try and escape?"

Sora, Donald and Goofy (who had been sitting on a floor in a circle) stared at him as one. "Of course."

"It's just…" Sora continued, waving her arms around. "We all need to know what's going on first. Plan first if you can so that way we're better prepared…"

 _Or that's what Leon said…and it does make sense so…_

"Alright then." Sora got up quickly, pulling up Donald and Goofy with her. "We might as well make a move…."

Peter watched curiously, holding off his offer of support as the three individuals seemed to have everything worked out together.

Pointing her keyblade at the door, a beam shot out and with a click, the door opened.

"Riku really is affected by the darkness" Sora deadpanned. "He _never_ used to be this stupid."

 _I'm sure he would've been told my keyblade can unlock anything so why would he put me in a locked room and be done with it? But then again, working with the darkness… He had to have been a little stupid…_

Sora quickly shook her head, reminding herself of the goals.

Find and beat up Riku.

Find and beat up Red Coat.

Find and rescue Kairi.

Find (if possible) and beat up Maleficent.

Hopefully survive all these things.

...and maybe beat up Riku once more... for good measure and all.

"Mind if I tag along?" Peter smiled at them and Sora's mouth dropped open.

"Y-You're flying?!" she gasped and Peter nodded, looking curious.

"You can't?" he seemed genially surprised.

"It's always been a dream of mine." Sora admitted sheepishly as she scratched the back of her head. "Well, Kairi too but-"

"Here, all you got to do is believe!" Peter Pan said, tugging at her hand and pulling her off the ground a few inches.

"WAIT!" Donald shouted, quickly tugging Sora back to the ground (she was a little bit put out because she _had_ been enjoying that). "First, we have to get off this ship! Maybe afterwards but for now, we've got to get to Kairi!"

Sora nodded, eyes narrowing as the four of them turned to the door.

 _We're coming, Kairi._

The ship was infested with heartless. There was no other words for it.

They were powerful, many being even stronger than sword-wielding heartless from Agrabah. These also wielded swords but looked more like pirates than anything else. Some long distance heartless kept throwing spells to attack the party or heal the heartless so it was even harder to fight. The potions were being used up quicker than Sora would've liked but she was rather thankful Peter Pan was with them as he was proving to be a powerful ally.

His pixie, Tinkerbell, zoomed around the area throwing dust in the heartless's eyes or simply distracting them while Sora cut through them.

"This way!" Peter Pan waved them through a door, leading into a small cabin area.

"There's nobody inside…" Sora murmured in disappointment as Donald and Goofy quickly searched the area for anything.

"Gwarsh!" Goofy quickly held up a paper. "Another report from Ansem!"

Sora smiled weakly.

 _But I'd rather see Kairi right now…_

"Peter? Peter Pan?" a girl's voice from somewhere above them caused Sora to look in the corner of the room.

There was a hole that had been patched up with metal bars. While they could see that small part of the room above them, Sora had a feeling they wouldn't be able to get there through the bars.

"Wendy!" Peter shouted, grinning through the grate on the floor above them they could a girl in a blue dress. "Don't worry, we're coming for you!"

 _Now, if only Kairi… Wait, he might be there!_

Sora had just seen near the corner of the bars somebody else. She couldn't see that well because of the angle but she could make out a familiar arm with a bracelet on it.

 _Somebody else is up there with her…And… I think I know who it is…_

"Umm… Wendy, is there a boy there with you?"

There was a silence as Sora's friends shot her a sympathetic look and Sora almost wept with relief when Wendy confirmed it (of course she wouldn't _really_ cry because she _never_ cried but still).

"Kairi?!" Sora shouted, her voice a desperate plea as Wendy explained the boy hadn't moved or reacted at all.

 _So he really has lost his…_

Kairi's fingertips twitched at Sora's voice and she beamed.

 _This is great! He can obviously react to my voice even if he's lost his heart! He's not completely gone! I'll get him back to normal with my own strength!_

"Please hurry though!" Wendy said quickly. "The pirates are coming!"

Sora panicked slightly as the four of them heard a door open above them.

"Wak…" Donald frowned before they all jumped as Wendy screamed.

"WENDY!" Peter shouted and Sora knew instantly that Kairi was being taken away too.

 _No! I can't let him be taken again! Not now that I've found him!_

Sora bashed her brain for any plan at all. It wasn't meant to be this hard. She, Donald and Goofy had expected they'd run into Kairi or Riku eventually. However, they hadn't anticipated being blocked off by metal bars. Sora wished the bars weren't there-

She stopped as shuffling continued upstairs and Peter continued to shout, arms whacking the metal bars as he continued to stay in the air.

 _A wish… Genie… Of course!_

Grabbing the lamp that had been attached to her side, Sora rubbed it quickly and was not disappointed when her blue friend's obnoxiously funny voice entered their cabin room.

"Gawrsh Genie! It's nice ta' see you again, hyuk!" Goofy waved happily.

"Too true!" Genie laughed. "Sora, in need of my assistance, right?"

Sora nodded, quickly pointing at the metal bars. "We need those gone or destroyed so we can get through!"

"Righto!" Genie clicked his hands and the metal bars disappeared. "I'll just hang around encase you need any more help."

Sora nodded, quickly following Peter (who shot her a grateful smile) through the whole.

"Wak, wait for us!" Donald complained, being the shortest of the lot.

"You know, you just need to ask." Genie remarked as he casually picked up Donald and went through the hole, placing the duck on the upper level.

"They went out this door!" Peter said quickly. "Let's go!"

It seemed Sora had saved more time than she thought as they found Wendy still in the hallway struggling in a smaller pirate's hold.

"Come on, miss Wendy. We can't keep captain Hook waiting!" the pirate blubbered quickly, his red hat and too small striped top making him a very sore sight for the eyes.

"As if I'll let you take her, Smee!" Peter was fighting the small pirate instantly and the pirate was done quicker than Sora thought.

 _I guess some pirates aren't as good as I imagined them to be…_

Sora rushed up to Wendy while Peter fought, making sure the girl was alright. Wendy was taller than Sora (probably older by a year or two) but it looked like she'd never been in a fight herself. Wendy was unconscious and Sora was thankful when Donald cast a small cure on her just to make sure the girl was alright.

"Alright." Peter Pan said finally as he carefully picked Wendy up before snapping at Tinkerbell. "Seriously, stop bothering me Tink! I'm trying to help Wendy!"

Sora frowned as Tinkerbell quickly zoomed off.

 _Was that tears in the pixie's eyes…?_

"Hyuk, what're you gonna' do now?" Goofy asked Peter who was slowly rising in the air.

"This is as far as we go together, alright?" Peter asked them as he looked at Wendy worriedly. "I've got to get Wendy to safety."

Sora nodded, understanding completely that if Peter continued with them, Wendy would be in more danger. "That's okay. We can handle the rest from here."

Peter Pan smiled at them before flying out a window.

"Let's go!" Donald led the way down the hallway to where Kairi was taken too.

The three of them stopped as they ran into the room, the door banging open loud enough to alert whoever was in there. Captain Hook (Peter had explained that was what Red Coat was called) stopped speaking to Riku, glaring as he saw Sora and her party.

"Blast it! Well, whatever. Even if Peter's not a prince of heart, the Kairi boy is, right?" Captain Hook said. "Even if you wasted all my resources getting that Wendy girl here as bait, at least we've nearly got all the princes of heart."

With that, Captain Hook walked out the cabin and Riku, who was holding Kairi in his arms, turned to Sora and scowled.

But Sora was pale as everything finally, _finally_ came together.

If Kairi was a prince of heart… And Maleficent was probably writing the recent Ansem reports… And one of those recent reports said that the writer (who was still most probably Maleficent) released a prince's heart…

 _ **I have chosen a boy. I don't know if he holds the princes' powers, but I will find out. He may lead me to the key bearer. I shall set him free and observe.**_

Those words echoed in Sora's head as the truth finally hit her.

Maleficent had caused Kairi to lose his heart (because who else was close to the keybearer which was Sora?)! And now Maleficent was using Riku!

"Riku! It's a trap!" Sora shouted quickly, words continuing to tumble out of her lips as Riku's eyes narrowed. "Have you heard of Ansem's reports?! Well, I read one of them and it was by Malefience! She's the one who caused Kairi to lose his heart!"

Riku frowned and his hold on Kairi tightened before a dark portal appeared behind him and he stepped inside.

A crushing weight seemed to envelop Sora and she ran forward to grab her best friend who was being tricked but she was suddenly just managing to duck out of the way of her shadow self's attack.

Riku disappeared along with the last wisps of black.

 _No…_

"We'll take care of this Sora!" Donald was standing in front of her instantly, grinning weakly at her. "You go outside and see if Riku's still around!"

"Yep!" Goofy agreed. "He looked kinda' doubtful. Maybe you can convince him, huh?"

Sora beamed and nodded, not looking back as she ran out the cabin door and once again onto the deck of the ship. The cool air hit her face instantly, relaxing her somewhat as she immediately caught sight of Captain Hook.

She may be fighting alone physically but… she could feel in her heart that Donald, Goofy and even Kairi were with her, cheering her on.

She was not alone.

* * *

 **Me:** And the plot thickens! I'm curious though. Did anybody actually read Ansem's reports? I was seriously surprised when I found out one of the princesses of Heart had their hearts released (ie. lost their heart). As Kairi was the only princess of Heart who lost a heart... OoO

 **Sora:** It would have to be whoever wrote Ansem's report as the one who took Kairi's heart, right?

 **Me:** Bingo! Leave a comment to make me fuzzy and happy!


	39. Neverland Part 2

**Me:** Guys, **I need some help!**

 **Sora:** What's up?

 **Me: Can Riku's keyblade lock keyholes? **And what about Kairi's? Is there an actual confirmed answer or is it unknown?

 **THIS IS IMPORTANT SO PLEASE COMMENT AND TELL ME IF YOU KNOW (OTHERWISE I'LL GUESS)**

* * *

"Ah look, it's the little lass." Captain Hook said bored as he shrugged. "That boy Riku left, didn't he? He's such a _heartless_ person."

Sora's eyes narrowed. "So you guys _are_ trying to turn him into a heartless."

Captain Hook scoffed. "As if. Maleficent sees potential though. Now then… Hand over the keyblade."

"As if." Sora took a step back, a small twitch coming onto her face as she remembered a similar scene with Leon back when she first arrived in Traverse Town. "Where did Riku go?"

Captain Hook smirked. "To the place where Maleficent resides. Hollow Bastian."

 _So he's went back to Maleficent? …Fine. I'll get two birds with one stone._

Sora clenched her keyblade tighter, preparing to knock Captain Hook out quickly. However, it seemed the captain realised what she was about to do because suddenly the heartless appeared and rushed towards Sora as one.

Sora was quick to act, summoning Simba and Mushu at the same time to help seeing as she was fighting by herself. Doing a joint attack with Mushu, flames lit up the area as she blasted some of the heartless while Simba launched himself at the long range heartless. It seemed to go on forever and Sora's limbs trembled from exhaustion. How long had it been since she last had a break-

 _No._

She would get through this. She'd been through tougher battles before. Kairi was counting on her and Riku needed her to show him that Maleficent was tricking him. It's what best friends were for. Helping each other.

She continued to fight and was finally starting to notice the amount of heartless was slowly getting smaller and smaller.

 _Good.. I don't have to keep encouraging myself anymore because the battle's almost done!_

The last heartless was taken care of quickly and just in time too, as both Simba and Mushu vanished as their summon time was up.

"You… won't…hah…ha… get away with this!" Sora glared venomously at Captain Hook, who merely smirked back and grabbed a small glass case off of his subordinate pirate (that Smee guy from before).

"Really? So you _don't_ care what happens to your little pixie friend?" the pirate grinned as he held up the lantern with a trapped Thinkerbell inside.

"No!" Sora shouted, about to step forward before she realised Thinkerbell could be hurt if she tried to move. "I… What do you want?"

Hook smirked, about to reply when many things happened in quick succession.

Peter Pan came zooming out of nowhere, grabbing the glass case.

Hook nearly tore out his hair as he tried catching the glass case before it was too late but he ended up crashing to the ground, his sword sinking into half of the plank and causing it to wobble dangerously.

In the process of falling, Sora was pushed towards the plank and only just managed to hold on instead of falling into the water. Her heart was beating erratically as she looked down at the water and saw a crocodile with its mouth hanging open as if to tear her apart as soon as she fell.

"Sora!" Donald's panicked shriek was suddenly overruled by the ominous creaking of the plank where Hook's sword had cut into.

As it had literally been nearly sawed in half, Sora could see it was going to snap off any second now. .. and then she'd be crocodile food…

"Just believe Sora! If you believe, you can fly and do anything!" Peter's voice came from somewhere above her and even though Sora was nearly about to fall, she felt worried for him as she heard cannons going off and realised somebody must be shooting at him.

 _Believe… I can fly?_

The plank gave a snap and it started to tremble, Sora nearly losing her grip completely.

"Sora, hang on!"

Her eyes flickered to Donald who was staring ashen-faced at her, trying to stretch his body and hand her his staff to grab onto.

"Can you reach it?!"

Sora smiled softly. "It's okay."

And she let go.

 _I believe._

She was flying instantly and Donald's slacken jaw look nearly caused her to lose focus of her surroundings. As it was, she just managed to avoid the cannon now aimed at her and she zoomed through the air.

"Glad to see you up here, Sora!" Peter smiled at her. "Let's show Smee and Hook what we're-"

"Does somebody need the awesome Genie's help?"

Sora nearly fell out of the air as she remembered Genie was still with them.

 _I forgot he wasn't actually a summon gem… So I guess he can stay for as long as he wants then… Oh well, I'm not complaining!_

Donald and Goofy quickly ran out of the way as the crocodile was suddenly floating in the air thanks to Genie lifting it up.

"Here we go!" Genie smiled as he put the large predator on the deck right next to a panicking Hook. "I think somebody wants to say hello!"

"AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Captain Hook screamed an ear piercing scream as the crocodile quickly came towards him. "NNNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOO! SAAAAAAVVEEEEEE MEEEEEEEEE SMMMMEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

Hook jumped out of the ship and ran across the water, literally _ran_ because he was so fast in his hurry to get away. The crocodile jumped down happily, licking its lips as it chased him away, away, away…

"Err…" Smee broke the silence of the anti-climatical battle and pulled his red cap off his head, shifting awkwardly. "I'll just… go save the captain!"

And then the short fat man jumped into a small lifeboat and started oaring in the direction of the sea his captain went.

"That was…" Sora began, only to be cut off by Donald and Goofy jumping on her.

"We're so glad you're okay, hyuk!" Goofy laughed and Sora grinned (though she yelped when Donald hit her first).

"Come on, we'd better get ready to go… I've found out Maleficent's base."

"Well Sora, call on me if you need me again!" Genie smiled at them all before disappearing.

"Come on." Peter waved them in the air (after Donald and Goofy succeeded in flying). "I'll take you to where Wendy is and we can say our goodbyes there. She may even have information on the boy who was with her in the same cabin."

Sora nodded and they all followed Peter Pan.

The words were mulled over in Sora's head as she remembered Ansem's report again and how Maleficent was the cause of Kairi losing his heart. But now Sora was remembering what it said after Kairi's heart was released.

 _ **The body is gone; the heart should have returned to the Heartless. And yet, nothing. This one is unlike any other. Its memories remain, and it has yet to take the form of a Heartless.**_

 _So this means something happened which prevented Kairi from becoming a heartless… The heartless haven't taken his heart yet… Added to that, he managed to respond somewhat to me when I called him back in the cabin on the ship… I know I can save him… I may not know how but… I_ _ **believe**_ _I can._

Traverse Town:

"You guys look awful." Yuffie commented dryly as the trio entered the First District. "What happened?"

"We know where Maleficent's base is." Sora remarked tiredly as a yawn threatened to escape her. "Though we need Cid to give us the coordinates as the keyhole in Neverland didn't give us a navigation gummi."

When the trio had arrived at a clock tower following Peter Pan, they had somehow been roped into helping Wendy. She tried getting Peter to put the clock position into the right time but he apparently never looked at clocks before with Roman Numerals. As such, Wendy asked them to do it because they were also flying.

Upon fixing the clock, the keyhole appeared and after goodbyes and a promise to request Thinkerbell for help should they need it (all Sora had to do was call out and Thinkerbell would somehow know), Chip and Dale used the instant teleportation beam to bring them back on the ship (which was only partially fixed). Thankfully they used the warp drive so they didn't have to fight any more heartless but the ship was in need of a lot of repair.

 _Poor Cid's going to have his hands full…_

Later…

"I'll have everything done by tomorrow morning." Cid promised despite Sora's earlier thoughts.

"If Maleficent's nearly gathered all the princes of heart, she'll need to be stop quickly." Leon said, his face set into his customary frown.

"Right." Sora nodded as she continued to sort out the potions, ethers and the (rare) elixirs the trio had on them.

It was at least one thing she could do while Donald and Goofy went shopping for stronger weapons for themselves.

"You'd better get some rest, okay?" Aerith asked, worry evident as she stared at Sora. "I'll finish these up."

Sora nodded gratefully before heading to her room, only to find Yuffie inside with an uncharacteristic frown on her face.

"Sora… You'll be fine, right?" Yuffie asked as she stared at the floor. "I mean, going back to my home world… It's filled with a _lot_ of heartless…"

Sora had a feeling Hollow Bastian _was_ filled with lots of heartless. It was why they were getting more potions and why Donald and Goofy were getting better weapons.

"I know." Sora nodded, realising Yuffie _could_ let worry get to her. "I'll be fine. I'll have Donald and Goofy with me, after all."

Yuffie seemed to come to a decision and she nodded, showing her customary grin as she gave Sora a pat on the shoulder. "Good, good! Because the Great Ninja Yuffie will not forgive you if you lose to the heartless _or_ Maleficent!"

As Sora finally got to bed, a warm feeling settled over her as she remembered all her new friends from all the worlds she'd been to. She was doing it for them as much as she was doing it to rescue Riku and Kairi.

She had a very peaceful sleep that night. Morning couldn't come soon enough.

Riku (Hollow Bastion)…

"How did Kairi lose his heart?" Riku demanded and Maleficent turned slowly, smiling coyly.

"Don't tell me you've let her get to you." The witch chuckled mockingly, making Riku's face flush with anger. "My dear boy, after all I've done to help you, you would doubt me now?"

"I told you before. I could care less about you. My goal is Kairi and So-… Kairi." Riku corrected himself, looking back into the witch's gaze. "I've done what you ask."

"Ah but your friend is still missing his heart." Maleficent said knowingly.

"And did you cause it?" Riku gritted his teeth as the witch looked silently at him for a moment before laughing again.

"You really are a fool if you'd believe the girl."

"I-I don't!" Riku glared angrily, though he seemed uncertain.

"Even so, you _are_ a fool." Maleficent scoffed. "Using a corridor of darkness when your heart isn't strong enough yet."

"I am strong enough!" Riku snapped.

This was starting to sound eerily exactly like what Sora had been warning him of. Was his heart not strong enough? Was he really going to lose it to the darkness?

"Not _yet_." Maleficent smirked, walking closer to him. "But there is a way. I can give you more power. And there is something that is yours-rightfully so. All you have to do is take it back…"

"I… What is it?" Riku asked suspiciously.

"Something that will help us get the boy's heart back." Maleficent laughed quietly. "Something that will open the door…"

"I… Fine. Give me more power."

From around the corner, a shadowy figure watched Riku. He would be the bait to bring the prince's heart here. And he would be the key to unlock the door.

Kingdom Hearts.

Soon.

* * *

 **Me:** Please comment on whether other keyblades can lock keyholes.

 **Sora:** By the way, **Mana-** Thanks for the correction for Tinkerbell (Otherwise this whole chapter would be filled with the wrong spelling as well). It should all be fixed now so once again, thanks!


	40. Hollow Bastion

**Me:** We've hit the crux of the story! Thank you to all who helped me with my question. By the way, I was seriously embarrassed when I found out I spelt Tinkerbell as Thinkerbell (yes Mana- I corrected it only to spell it wrong _again_ ). Really-first I was horrified, then I was embarrassed and then I started laughing at my own stupidity.

 **Sora:** It seems somebody else has to go back to school...

 **Me:** It's only been three weeks since I left... Anyhow, on to the story!

 **Riku:** Mearad doesn't own Kingdom Hearts or any of its characters!

 **Me:** Riku... Please don't sound optimistic... It's not in your character design...

 **Riku:** *scowls*

 **Me:** Perfect!

* * *

"Strange…" Sora murmured as she looked at Hollow Bastian, a feeling of nostalgia emerging.

… _Have I been here before?_

"Gawrsh, this is pretty amazin'!" Goofy smiled as he stuck his hand in the wall of water. "How do ya' think it works?"

Donald frowned, tapping his foot on the ground. "Probably dark magic. Now come on! We have a witch to stop!"

Sora cleared her thoughts instantly.

 _That's true. Right now Riku needs to come to his senses and we need to stop Maleficent from using the Princes of Heart to open the Door to Darkness… From using Kairi…_

"Sora, let's go!" Donald shouted, having already jumped to the first floating rock above them.

 _Kairi… If your heart was not consumed by the heartless… where did you go? …Well, wherever you are, I'll find you… I'll save you… You and Riku both._

Sora quickly followed her two friends, the looming castle in the distance causing a shiver of wariness to come over her.

Traverse Town (an hour earlier):

"They're gone." Leon said curtly as the group continued to eat their food in tense silence. "Now we can only wait."

Yuffie got up and yawned. "Yeah well… All this waiting is making me tired. I'm going to bed! See ya'!"

She walked out the hallway and turned right, her footsteps fading in the distance.

"They should be fine." Cid huffed. "I installed the best equipment on their gummi ship, after all."

Aerith got up quietly to put the dishes in the sink, a worried frown on her face. "I hope so… Oh… I shouldn't be worrying… Dilly Dally Shilly Shally…"

Cloud snorted from somewhere behind her and a smile found its way onto Aerith's face as she sat back down at the table.

"Hey…" Cid said suddenly as he put a hand thoughtfully under his chin. "Isn't Yuffie's room on the left side of the hallway? Why'd she go right?"

Everyone froze.

Hollow Bastian (with Sora, Donald and Goofy):

"GIVE HIM BACK!"

The scene was a battlefield.

A huge beast was fighting Riku, claws extended and leaving deep gorge marks on the platform as Riku continued to taunt him and dodge.

A jolt of fear entered Sora as she, Donald and Goofy continued to watch as the beast creature's attack got closer and closer to hitting Riku.

 _I have to do something!_

Sora didn't know why she did it-Riku was, after all, working with Maleficent and currently _out of his mind_. She jumped in front of him, her keyblade deflecting the beast's razor sharp claws from hurting her (ex) best friend.

The beast growled, his eyes flashing with rage. "Get out of my way!"

"He's not in his right mind!" Sora said desperately. "Stop trying to kill him!"

The beast creature pulled away slowly from Sora, still glaring with obvious fury as his eyes turned to Riku.

"Hahaha!" Riku smirked as Donald and Goofy quickly stood next to Sora, ready to defend their friend (because they obviously had more common sense than Sora). "I thought you'd never make it. Still, I don't need you to try and trick me into believing you care about me or Kairi."

Sora glared. "I do care but you wouldn't understand anyway! The darkness has messed you up! I'll just _beat_ some sense into you!"

Riku's smirk turned into a thin line, his eyes flashing with dark anger. "… _Really?_ "

Riku disappeared from in front of Sora and the next second, the beast howled in pain behind her. Sora's eyes widened at the speed of Riku. She hadn't even saw him coming! The beast continued to grasp at his wound, blood falling from the slash across his chest.

"Wak, I'll heal you!" Donald said in alarm as he raised his staff.

 _Why did Riku…?_

"You really think you can beat me?" Riku smirked again back at his original position. "You couldn't even stop me from attacking that monster."

The beast growled softly and Sora glared, summoning her keyblade even as a flicker of doubt entered her.

 _He really had been so fast though… Will I… Will I really be able to defeat Riku?_

"But anyway, that's not why I'm here." Riku drawled out, bringing his hand in front of him as his dark weapon seemed to disappear. "I'm here to pick up my delivery."

"What…?" Sora frowned as Goofy and Donald stared in silent confusion.

Riku merely smirked as his eyes locked on Sora's before staring at the keyblade in her hands, which seemed to lurch in her grip.

 _What…?_

It lurched again as a flicker of fear entered Sora again.

 _I know my chances of beating Riku seem dimmer and dimmer but if I lose the keyblade…!_

"NO!" she shouted, desperately trying to hold onto the keyblade and feeling despair claw at her as it disappeared in her hands, only to appear in Riku's.

"There can't be two keyblade masters." Riku smirked once more in victory.

 _No… No. NO! NO! NOOO!_

"You'll never have the strength to save Kairi." Riku sneered. "Why don't you just run along and play with this?"

A wooden sword was thrown at Sora's feet and she wasn't sure when she fell on her knees and just stared at the wooden sword.

"Our rivalry ends now." Riku said. "You're nothing to me."

 _Why aren't Donald and Goofy saying anything?_

Riku walked off and Sora couldn't help the numbness overtaking her.

She didn't have the keyblade anymore. She could never beat Riku and bring him back to his senses. She could never beat Maleficent and save the worlds like she'd promised. She'd _**never have the strength to save Kairi**_ _**or Riku.**_

"Sora… I'm sorry."

She heard Donald speak and almost curled in on herself as she realised what was happening.

 _Even though I fought my way here with the keyblade…_

She'd never be worthy to have Donald and Goofy as her friends and the keyblade as her weapon. She was _**nothing**_.

Cid's (main) ship:

"I can't believe that little runt took one of my babies!" Cid cursed as he weaved the ship through the oncoming heartless with the expertise only a master pilot like himself could do. "Wait till I get my hands on Yuffie!"

Leon sighed in aggravation and Aerith mistook that for him wanting more tea. "Err… I really don't want…-"

Leon (in resignation) accepted the barely tea he hated with a passion as Aerith smiled and sat back down, taking small sips of her own drink. Cloud was silent, eyes closed and not reacting at all to anybody around him.

The atmosphere was tense.

And not even Cid's yelling could eliminate the worry they were all feeling. Not just for Yuffie but for Sora, Donald and Goofy too. This was it. After Hollow Bastian- _where it all started_ \- this would either make them or break them.

Cid sped up the ship.

Hollow Bastion: Sora

The beast creature was limping forward and Sora could see the pain across his face clearly.

 _But why was he going forward? He's just going to be beaten again…_

Sora had failed. Every bit of hope had been taken from her-the hope of awakening Kairi, the hope of finding Donald and Goofy's King, the hope of saving all the worlds… the hope of repairing Riku's and her own friendship-of bringing Riku back to his senses.

She was simply a failure.

"You… Why did you come here?"

It took a second for Sora to register the beast creature was talking to her and she looked up miserably.

She had no reason. She was a failure…

"I came to find Ben… He's very important to me." The beast said and with shock, Sora realised the beast creature was actually female (whoops).

" _ **Sora." Phil looked up, a frown on his face as he came towards her. "I believe you've got the skill to go on. But you have to prove it to me."**_

Even if others believed in her… She was a failure…

" _ **Just believe Sora! If you believe, you can fly and do anything!"**_

She didn't even have the keyblade…

" **You still won with your own skills." Leon interjected. "No matter how strong an opponent is, all somebody needs is to catch them off balance to change the tides of the battle."**

So… Did she really _need_ the keyblade…? _And_ what about her goal…? Her promise…?

 _ **She would get through this. She'd been through tougher battles before. Kairi was counting on her and Riku needed her to show him that Maleficent was tricking him. It's what best friends were for. Helping each other.**_

…! That was right…! Regardless of whether she had the keyblade or not, there was other ways to get through to Riku, other ways to save Kairi, other ways to stop Maleficent.

 _ **Sora sighed before getting up. "I think I'll look for the keyhole. No use crying over spilt milk, after all."**_

 _ **Donald smiled. "You've really matured since we first met you, Sora."**_

Sora was no longer a child. She had to make do with what she had. If she didn't have a keyblade? She'd use whatever weapon she could find!

Sora picked up the wooden sword. "I've come to save two very important friends of mine and help the worlds."

If she couldn't beat Riku in a fight on her own? Well, Leon always told her to look for an opening!

A mutual acceptance was shared between the female beast and Sora. "Let's go."

She had people counting on her to save the worlds as she promised. Even if she didn't wield the keyblade, she'd at least try and help. And when she'd got Riku back to normal, she'd get him to help as well.

While she no longer had the keyblade, she didn't _need_ it.

And she was going to start by proving it.

She wouldn't back down.

Hollow Bastian:

"The Great Ninja Yuffie has arrived!" Yuffie beamed as she jumped out the ship (that was severely damaged from what appeared to be bad driving skills).

There was nobody near or on the floating rocks (which seemed to be dangerous to stand on if one wasn't careful). Yuffie grinned.

She wasn't the best ninja in all the worlds for nothing!

She started jumping from rock to rock at an impossibly fast rate to reach Sora and help her out. After all, they were friends and Yuffie wanted some action too against fighting the monster that destroyed her hometown.

It looked unrecognisable…

"I'll definitely help Sora defeat you, Maleficent." Yuffie vowed.

* * *

 **Me:** I laughed as I wrote about the Beast. At first, I was wondering if I should make Belle chase after the Beast. But the Beast doesn't fit the princess/prince of hearts requirements (nice, kind, no darkness in hearts) because Beast has hatred, jealousy and grew up spoilt and cruel. Plus I couldn't see Belle surviving to Hollow Bastian and wielding anything that would help protect her against the heartless.

 **Beast:** So you made me female, did you?

 **Me:** Yep! But I thought describing you with a cute ribbon would be a bit too much so instead I made Sora realise after a while that you were a female beast!

 **Sora:**...I'm glad I didn't say that out loud... Beast would have probably killed me if I'd blurted it out!

 **Donald:** See Sora! You ARE learning to keep your mouth shut!

 **Sora:** Silence traitor!

 **Me:** No, that's in Kingdom Hearts 2.

 **Sora:**? Wha...?

 **Me:** Nevermind. Still, what did people think about having the gang travel to Hollow Bastian as well? I personally wanted to see more interaction between them and Sora, Donald and Goofy. It adds a certain feeling of support and confidence to Sora (or at least I think so).


	41. True Strength

**Me:** And I finally updated! Did everyone have a good Christmas? And New Year? I did but I found I needed a break from all this writing. I'm having trouble writing adequately and have been trying to get better (so any comments/tips/criticisms would be appreciated- _ps. I understand better with examples of how to do better_ ).

 **Sora:** I kinda' miss being in the story, you know? It's been a few weeks since I last acted.

 **Kairi:** Mearad, I have a question. Why do you make out that all of us in your author's notes act?

 **Me:** *rolls eyes* Because obviously when people read they are imagining the battle scenes and talking scenes and other stuff I write. You guys all 'act it out' in their minds. Therefore you are all actors!

 **Orochimaru:** Did somebody say-

 **Me:** *pulls out a gun and shoots him* HOW MANY TIMES DO i HAVE TO CHASE YOU AWAY FROM MY STORIES, YOU SNAKE TRAITOR, YOU!

* * *

"FIRE!" Sora shouted, merging her spell with Mushu's attack and blasting the heartless out of her way.

The beast growled from nearby, viciously attacking the heartless that were stupid enough to try and come near. "Be on guard. The castle is still very far away!"

The platform they had walked on to take them to the castle stopped everytime the heartless appeared, the creatures no doubt causing it. As such, Sora and the Beast had been fighting the heartless continuously and were already growing tired.

"Ah girl, the wooden sword's on fire!" Mushu warned and Sora grimaced, quickly throwing the it away to avoid the flames.

She'd make do with spells then.

"SORA!"

Sora spun around. Yuffie was standing on the land, waving her hands in the air as the platform got further and further away.

"I've come to help! I'll catch up to you though so don't wait!" Yuffie's voice was hard to hear but Sora was nevertheless stunned that her friend had decided to help.

"Girl, we got more heartless appearing." Mushu warned and Sora nodded, preparing a nice blizzard as a greeting.

She had more than magic with her though.

She had friends.

Cid's ship:

"We're about to pull in!" Cid hollered… just before he spewed a mouthful of swear words. "My baby! What did Yuffie do to you?!"

In front of them, hovering near Donald and Goofy's gummi ship, was the ship Yuffie had taken. It was battered and had various cracks in it, looking like it was going to fall apart. Cid howled in misery as he pushed the button to transport them to Hollow Bastion.

"There, there Cid." Aerith murmured comfortingly. "At least Yuffie's okay."

Cid looked up with an evil gleam in his eye. "We'd better find her then… hehehehehahahaha!"

Leon groaned. "Great. Cid's went insane."

Cloud only got out his buster sword, a small smirk on his face at Leon's frustration.

Holllow Bastion: Outside the Castle doors

Mushu had vanished already and currently Sora had Genie and Tinkerbell with her, the only two who wouldn't vanish because of a time limit.

"Genie, can you…?"

Beast's eyes were narrowed, her face pulled back into a snarl as she watched the area for heartless. "Hurry. The heartless are not far away."

"Right-o!" Genie clicked his fingers and the castle door unlocked itself, revealing a long hallway within. "Hmm… The barrier on the door was really advanced magic… but nothing compared to a ex-genie like me!"

Tinkerbell fluttered through the door only for yet another barrier to appear and collide with the pixie, sending her crashing back.

"Tinkerbell!" Sora gasped, her hands out and catching the pixie before she could fall. "Are you okay?"

Tinkerbell nodded, rubbing her shoulder which had bumped into the strange barrier.

"Hmm…" Genie muttered, poking the barrier. "Yep. This barrier prevents summons and therefore summon magic. I can't take down this barrier. That ol' witch you're after must know about us. "

Sora scowled.

 _Maleficent should just come out already! She's caused enough damage!_

"Right. We'll be fine from here on."

Genie frowned but ruffled Sora's hair affectionately. "Alright then. Al's counting on you to bring her boyfriend back! And don't forget, we'll be cheering for you! You're not alone."

Sora grinned.

Just like with Yuffie who came all this way to help, Sora was beginning to realise her friends supported her and while she first thought she'd make do with anything she could find, she already had something within her. Her friends gave her the courage she needed and helped her endure and continue on when she was fighting a hard battle.

"Are you ready?" Beast asked.

She nodded silently and the two of them walked in while Genie and Tinkerbell vanished in a flash of light.

Hollow Bastion: Yuffie

She was impatient.

Even as she spun her shuriken around, dodging deftly as the heartless swarmed her on the moving platform, she couldn't help but be impatient. How long was it going to take to reach the castle? She could see it coming closer and closer but fighting the heartless by herself meant that it took longer for the platform to begin moving again.

Seriously, this was unbelievable!

Hollow Bastion: Sora

"…Only the keyblade master can wield the power to open the secret door… And change the world." Riku eyes were glazed in thought as he ran a hand over the keyblade.

Sora forced herself to remain calm and _plan_.

 _Riku's not listening to me and thinks I've betrayed him and so he's trying to save Kairi himself... And because of this, he's set on opening the Door to Darkness. But he's in no state to understand it could harm all the worlds… or enable Maleficent to control them… I can't convince him or even talk to him which means… I_ _ **have**_ _to fight._

"You won't go any further, Riku." She frowned, getting into a defensive position despite having no sword at all. "You don't even know what you're doing. Why can't you realise Maleficent is using you? Heck, she's the one who hurt Kair-"

"Silence, traitor." Riku scowled and Donald and Goofy shot Sora a nervous look but she still wouldn't back down.

Goofy's POV:

It pained Goofy to see Sora standing there, weaponless and glaring angrily at Riku. Half of him wanted to simply go back to Sora and fight with her but the other half was set on following His Majesty's orders. In order to save the worlds from the heartless, Donald and he _had_ ta' stick with the keybearer because the King said so.

But he bit his lip indecisively when he saw an aura of darkness emit from Riku. Would this _really_ be the fella' the King wanted them to follow? And what Sora said was kinda' true. Riku _didn't_ know what he was doing-or at least was so different from what Sora remembered that he couldn't possibly be the same person.

Really, the boy was doing the exact opposite of what the King wanted and though Sora wasn't the keybearer anymore, Goofy still felt guilty for leaving her. It was he who said 'all for one and one for all' and yet he betrayed her for somebody who didn't care at all about other people or other worlds.

But Goofy had made his decision and the fact the keyblade chose Riku meant the keyblade sensed he had a strong heart. Surely that was enough-

" _ **The key holder will only bring disaster and disrupt the peace in this world."**_

" _ **I… am sorry I said that to you. I know most keyblade wielders go to protect the worlds but…"**_

Goofy was suddenly reminded of King Triton talking about how he lost his wife because she was a keyblade wielder. He had apologised for bursting those words out to Sora but… He had also hinted that not all keyblade wielders go to protect the worlds. Was Riku one of them?

Goofy looked at Sora, who was filled with such determination and sincerity and then to Riku, who was filled with anger and darkness swirling around him. They were two opposites and Sora had definitely been trying to save the worlds but Riku…

Sora finally started speaking again, her face calm and collected and Goofy couldn't help but feel proud how much she had grown since they had first met back in Traverse Town. Where had the excited, easy-go-lucky and careless girl went? Sora had matured so much in so little time.

Goofy couldn't imagine why the keyblade would choose Riku over Sora but if what Sora said was true about him, Riku had been a really cool fella' before Maleficent and the darkness got him. Sora was no doubt trying to get Riku out of whatever darkness-state he was in. It was with this sudden thought that Goofy realised he didn't _want_ to follow Riku. The King told him and Donald to stick with the keybearer but with sudden conviction Goofy was sure the King would be more disappointed Goofy had abandoned a friend rather than disobeyed his orders.

He almost stepped forward to go to Sora when Riku shot him a glare. Hesitating, Goofy decided to wait because he was sure Sora could save Riku from the darkness. She had a remarkable way with words (when she wasn't blurting things out anyway-Hyuk, some of those times were real funny!). She never gave up like that (and following them into the castle was proof!) and with Riku back to normal, they could all continue together.

All for one and one for all.

Sora's POV:

 _An opening… Where is an opening in Riku's stance? I could cast fire and quickly attack while the smoke and flames hide me from view… Beast has been locked out the room so I-_

"How do you even expect to fight?" Riku asked, pointing the keyblade at Sora. "You don't even have a weapon. You haven't even _won_ againstme before."

"It doesn't matter if I haven't." Sora said softly, looking Riku in the eye. "We are both different now. I have completely changed and I've improved. Everything I've been taught, all of the friends I've met… A part of them is with me. In the knowledge, experience and tips they've given me. In the inspiration and kindness, the support and encouragement… _This_ is what has made me stronger and different to before. They are all with me in my heart."

Riku scoffed, looking at Donald and Goofy briefly (they had moved as if to go towards Sora). His eyes flashed dangerously and he sneered. "The darkness will destroy you."

"You're wrong."

"Oh yeah. How?" Riku scoffed.

"Like how a part of everyone else's heart remains in me… A part of mine remains in them." Sora said and Donald and Goofy stared at her, as if seeing her for the first time, as somebody other than a kid. Somebody who was wising up to everything around her.

 _I will defeat Riku and then take down Malficent if I have to in order to get Riku back to normal but…_

It all started here.

With Riku.

"I _won't_ be losing." Sora smirked at Riku, getting ready to fight. "I'm going to fulfil my promise to everyone and their strength is with me. Alone, my heart is weak… But I am not alone. I _will_ win!"

"This again? Shall we test that theory?" Riku drawled, raising his hand. "Let's see if you're heart is really as strong as you think."

Sora was just about to move… when she found she couldn't.

… _What?!_

Riku smirked and before Sora realised what was happening, a black orb of darkness shot towards her. It came closer and closer and closing her eyes, Sora heard a loud bang-

"You okay, Sora, ahyuk?"

Sora's eyes widened. Goofy stood in front of her, having deflected the attack from Riku.

"…Yeah…"

"You'd betray your king?" Riku seemed genially surprised (and a little annoyed).

"Not on your life!" Goofy shouted, his voice firm. "But I ain't gonna' betray Sora either!"

Sora grinned. "All for one and-"

"-one for all!" Donald finished.

Sora and Goofy stared boggled-eyed at Donald as he quickly ran up to them, smiling. He was _voluntarily_ breaking the rules? After all the time he scolded them for breaking them and interfering in the world orders?!

"Well, you know…" Donald muttered bashfully. "We kinda' told you we're all for one and… You know what I mean anyhow! You're stuck with us now!"

" _ **Eh. It's not that bad." Riku said after Sora handed him a piece and he bit into it. "I suppose you'd better get used to losing all the time, now that you're stuck with me forever."**_

" _ **Cheer up Sora." Kairi grinned as Sora stared morbidly at the ground. "You're still stuck with me forever! And-Hey, why are you pretending to look horrified?!"**_

Sora nodded. "I guess we're stuck as a team, huh? But we're not the only ones connected. First we have to get Riku back to his senses."

 _After all, I promised Kairi, him and me would stay friends forever too… And I'm not about to break that promise!_

"I already told you-" Riku began. "You-"

"Enough." Sora interrupted. "You _think_ you're going to win like all the other times. You won't understand unless I show you… That my friends are my power!"

 _Just like the Riku who isn't tainted by darkness… and Kairi, who always made me laugh and gave me confidence…! You're all my power… And I'll do anything I can to protect you all! I'll get Riku back to normal!_

The keyblade disappeared from Riku's hand.

"W-What?!" Riku's mouth dropped open and everyone held their breath.

 _Ching._

Sora looked down at the weapon in her hand.

A warmth seemed to spread from her finger tips, as if the keyblade was telling her it would never leave again. With trembling hands, Sora attached Cloud's keychain back on. It changed back into its buster sword look-a-like shape.

She looked up at Riku, who had been staring pale-faced at her. Donald and Goofy quickly moved to stand beside her, sensing the battle was about to begin.

"You sure you can win, Riku?" Sora asked softly. "Maleficent seems to be wrong this time… Who is to say she isn't wrong about helping you? That she isn't _lying_ to you?"

Riku's face contorted into fury and he quickly summoned his original dark blue and red weapon.

Sora quickly raised her keyblade, disappointment only swarming her for a second.

 _He just had evidence that Maleficent was wrong yet why? Why can't he break free from the darkness? I guess… once I defeated him, I'll defeat the witch too. Hopefully then whatever is confusing Riku will be gone._

Then Sora was blocking Riku's attacks, Donald and Goofy barely managing to evade the double dark orbs blasted towards them. Swiftly ducking another attack, Sora's mind was going into overdrive as she once again saw the familiar pattern of Riku's fighting style back on the beach.

 _He may have gotten new dark powers.. He may have even gotten faster but.. he hasn't been trained by Leon or Cloud like I have… He hasn't fought a whole bunch of heartless or monsters like I have… Right now… my heart is strong because of this! And I can see an opening!_

Sora blocked as Riku jumped into the air for an arching sweep. Quicker than he expected, Sora raised her keyblade for a parry and her silver haired-turned-confused-by-the-darkness best friend stared wide-eyed at the close call.

"I told you Riku. I will beat you." Sora stated calmly (though she was breathing a bit heavily). "You're only losing because you've sought out power the wrong way. I have my friends… I _had_ you… And now I'm going to get you back… To prove to you that darkness is not the way. And then we can save Kairi together."

For a second, Riku hesitated.

Something seemed to connect between them, almost as if their hearts had touched, had finally been reconnected after the darkness separated them… But then the dark look was back in Riku's eyes.

He ran forward and the battle continued.

Hollow Bastion: Yuffie

The castle was in sight.

Now if only she could get rid of these last few heartless without losing anymore shurikens…

Hollow Bastion: Aerith, Leon, Cloud and Cid

"We just have to wait for the platform…" Leon sighed. "Looks like somebody's on it…"

"This could take a while…" Aerith muttered worriedly. "I hope everyone's alright."

"Hmph." Cid huffed. "We won't be alright if we don't get our asses moving, darlin'!"

Cloud's buster sword was already out as more heartless appeared.

Hollow Bastion: Sora, Donald and Goofy

It was over quicker than Sora thought.

It most likely would have gone on longer had Donald and Goofy not been with her but still, it seemed too easy. She could see so many flaws in Riku's fighting style that it was easy to catch him off guard. Then with Donald and Goofy preventing Riku from being on the offensive, Riku's exhaustion started to show on his face and in the way his body started to tremble.

 _Can you see now, Riku?_

Riku flinched as he jumped back a few metres, a grimace on his face.

"Riku…"

He flinched again before shaking his head. "How… can you be so strong…?"

"We already told ya'!" Goofy smiled.

"It's because we're all fighting together, wak!" Donald said.

Riku shook his head even as his weird dress-like clothes disappeared because of his failing strength.

He turned and ran.

"Riku!" Sora shouted and she didn't have to tell Donald or Goofy to follow her because as one, they all chased after him.

She would help her best friend. She wouldn't allow Maleficent to be in contact with Riku any longer. She wouldn't allow Riku to run back to the witch. To the darkness.

* * *

 **Me:** So basically Sora, Donald and Goofy are already in the castle. Then Yuffie is the next closest to them, on the platform that goes from the waterfall area to the castle and Aerith, Leon, Cid and Cloud are waiting for that platform to drop Yuffie off so it can come back and take them across.

 **Hey, you have a question from the reviews!**

 **Me:**...Who the hell said that?

 **Just answer the question!**

 **Me:** *coughs nervously* O-Okay... Um, in reference to the "silence, traitor", **Suntan140** , I'm actually referring to Demyx's words to Sora in Kingdom Hearts 2 when he says that exact line, hence why it is 'in Kingdom Hearts 2". Sorry for confusing you! And **Shiranai Atsune** , as you no doubt saw, Yuffie didn't make it in time to fight Riku (...the first time, anyway O-O).

 **Great! Thanks for answering them! See you next time!**

 **Me:** *still nervous and twitchy* Who the hell is that?!


	42. Fire and Ice

**Me:** Hey everyone! I actually really liked writing this chapter. Let me know what you think, okay? In terms of what could be better described/written/gramarised...ect.

 **Sorta:** Hey, you spelt my name wrong!

 **Me:** Hehe

* * *

"There he is!" Sora pointed at the floor below them. But before Sora could jump down after her wayward friend, a barrier appeared. "Riku!"

"Gawrsh, we can't jump down…" Goofy pushed his hands against the barrier but it remained solid.

"Sora…" Donald frowned worriedly as Sora slammed her fists into the barrier.

"I bet this is because of Maleficent…" Sora growled before she turned and looked around, not willing to give up. "Come on! We're bound to reach Riku another way if we explore!"

It was left unsaid that time would be wasted and Maleficent could have hurt Riku even more.

 _Riku… Please don't let me be too late. I'm coming…_

Hollow Bastion Castle: Yuffie

Yuffie stepped off the platform, sweat trickling down her forehead. Was this what Sora, Donald and Goofy had to fight when they came?

"You guys… You'd better be okay…" Yuffie frowned as she headed for the castle doors. "You promised, Sora…"

Hollow Bastion: Cid, Aerith, Leon, Cloud

"How long is this going to take?!" Cid shouted (with a lot of swearing).

The dreaded platform that directed them towards the castle was slowing them down as well…

Sora, Donald and Goofy: Ten minutes later…

"Damn it!" Sora scowled.

They had barely managed to walk outside to the castle balcony when heartless swarmed them, threatening to send them toppling down the cliffs. Luckily, everyone was quick to respond but potions and ethers were running low and to make things worse, Donald had been injured in the fight. He was now walking with a limp, phantom pains causing him to stumble even though the injury was gone.

"We're nearly there…" Goofy tried to sound encouraging as the three of them looked down at the door Riku had disappeared through.

…Now only five metres below them, one metre less than when they had arrived.

"Man, if only Genie was here, we could -" Sora began before a bright light flashed.

The barrier disappeared.

"…What?"

"Grr… Let's move."

The three of them jumped upon hearing the Beast's rather gruff voice for a female and turning, saw her swipe at a heartless that had snuck up on them.

"Beast! How did you get here?!" Sora gasped.

"There are other ways into this castle." The Beast growled out. "And other ways to shut down the barriers."

Beast pointed towards the roof, where a large hole showed shredded wires crackling with electricity. It was evident Beast had literally clawed her way through them, intent on destroying the source of the barriers' power.

"Damn it…" Sora mumbled as the four of them quickly jumped down to the floor level. "Why didn't _I_ think of that…?"

"Gawrsh Sora, no need to beat yourself up over it." Goofy put a comforting hand on Sora's shoulder. "We didn't think of it either, hyuk!"

"Right…"

The four of them walked onwards, weapons (or claws) ready in case Maleficent decided to attack.

"You won't be going any further." Maleficent's malicious voice stopped the group cold in their tracks. "I've had enough with your stupid meddling-"

Before Maleficent could continue her speech, Goofy interrupted. "Gawrsh, don't ya' mean 'muddling'?"

Silence.

"Goofy, you fricken' idiot!" Donald squawked in anger. "How many times do I have to tell you?! It _is_ ' _meddling_ '!"

"But I thought we _weren't_ supposed to be muddling in people's affairs?" Goofy frowned in confusion.

"YOU…!" Donald's eyes were going red in rage as he swerved towards Goofy and began his long rant.

Sora and Maleficent stared at the scene with Beast continued to get angrier and angrier at the person who took Ben away from her.

"Uh… guys?" Sora hesitantly asked and was rewarded with Donald and Goofy pausing.

"Hahaha!" Maleficent laughed as Sora reminded everyone of her presence. "Do you really think you can stop me?"

"Uhh…. Yeah, not that we actually told you that or anything…" Sora mumbled, mouth twitching into a smirk as Donald and Goofy snickered.

"…"

"…Awkward…" Sora muttered under her breath and the witch snapped.

"HOW DARE YOU?! You DARE try to make a fool out of me?!"

Whatever Maleficent had planned to say to them, it was evident this wasn't it. And whatever she had planned to say, Sora would never know. Because right at that moment Beast lunged at the witch who barely had time to dodge.

Sora, Donald and Goofy quickly joined the fight, realising talking time was over.

"I am the mistress of all evil!" Maleficent raised her staff as the ground began to shake. "I will kill you all for your impudence!"

Darkness surrounded them and as it dispersed, the group found themselves in a large circular room. But before anybody could do anything, Riku appeared, dressed once more in his weird dark clothes.

"Do you need some help, witch?" Riku chuckled lightly, blatantly ignoring Maleficent's scowl (she was interrupted _again_ ) as he turned to Beast. "I'll take care of this one."

 _Wait… Is that…?_

"A keyblade?!" Sora gasped as Donald and Goofy eyed the dark coloured keyblade with unease.

Riku chuckled. "Yes. Though this keyblade has the power to unlock people's hearts."

Sora couldn't help but wonder what was wrong with Riku. He seemed… too different from before. She had just bested him and he had seemed confused over the power that had failed him. It seemed the perfect opportunity to knock some sense into him yet… Riku now seemed infested with darkness even greater than before.

 _Had she been too late? Had Maleficent gotten to him?_

"Unlock… people's hearts?" Donald frowned. "What do you mean by that?!"

Riku smirked as he took a few steps closer to Maleficent. "Allow me to demonstrate…"

He plunged his keyblade into Maleficent.

"Urgh…" Maleficent gasped as she glared daggers at Riku.

"Surrender your heart to the darkness…!" Riku shouted, eyes flashing intensely. "Become darkness itself!"

Riku pulled away and shot a smirk at Sora. With a sinking heart, Sora realised Riku _wasn't_ trying to help them and they were still on opposite sides. He disappeared in a black portal and Sora turned her attention on the cackling witch who seemed to be glowing with the power of darkness.

"Guys…" Sora tensed as a huge jet of darkness shot out of Maleficent. "It's time to get serious…!"

"This... power...HAHAHAHAHAHAAAAA!"

Sora closed her eyes to block out the intense light... only to see a humongous black dragon where Maleficent once stood.

"Garwsh!" Goofy yelped as the Maleficent-turned-dragon gave a mighty roar. "Fellas, I think this is gonna' be a tough battle...!"

"MOVE!" Beast's warning was the only one they got before Maleficent's tail swiped the area, intending to trip them and throw them back.

"Urgh...!" Sora's body connected with the wall and as she stood up, a ringing sound echoed in her ears.

She stumbled for only a second before Donald's healing magic washed over her. Her mind was going twelve miles a minute as Maleficent began moving around the area, chasing after Beast who had slashed across the dragon's snout.

"The legs!" Sora shouted to Donald and Goofy. "We can stop her from moving if we attack her legs!"

"Wait Sora!" Donald stopped Sora from going near the rampaging dragon. "We'll use Blizzard together to stop her! I need someone to cast with me though!"

"But..." Sora looked worriedly at Goofy, who smiled.

"Don't worry, hyuk! I'll keep her distracted with Beast!"

Sora and Donald brought their weapons together to power their merged blizzard just as Beast got herself caught in a bind. Maleficent's large jaws lunged forward to eat Beast in two. She caught the attack, her claws holding the upper and lower jaws of the dragon at bay but she was struggling. Maleficent's tail was beating widely, crashing into walls and sending bits of rubble everywhere as the dragon's strength fought to overpower Beast.

"INCOMIN'!" Goofy shouted as he spun towards Maleficent in fast circles with his shield raised.

Maleficent roared in pain as Goofy's spinning attack smashed into her snout, sending her staggering back. Goofy quickly stood in front of Donald and Sora, covering them from falling debris as Maleficent had tried to shake away the pain only to send two pillars crashing to the ground whilst she thrashed around.

"NOW Sora!" Donald shouted and Goofy had a sudden instinct to place placed his shield with their weapons, giving them more power for the spells.

The blizzard spell worked immediately and Maleficent tripped as her front leg remained frozen and therefore immobilizing her. Then her other legs started to form ice around them and she was unable to move at all. She roared angrily again but seemed for the most part unable to do anything to fight.

"We did it!" Sora cheered, feeling some sort of stress leak out of her.

The witch who had taken Kairi and Riku away from her, who had caused the worlds to be lost, who had done so many evil things… She-

"NO!" Beast warned them and the trio turned to see Maleficent struggling to stand up and crushing the ice around her feet by slamming them into the ground.

And then the green fire erupted from the dragon's mouth.

The circular room instantly felt like a furnace and smoke blinded Sora, causing her to trip over all the rocks and fallen pillars that littered the ground. Her eyes watered almost painfully and her lungs were starting to hurt, but she could feel (and the keyblade was almost emitting a sort of urge to her) that she was in danger if she didn't keep moving.

And so she ran blindly.

Beast

The Beast was quick enough to climb on top of one of the pillars, able to see the fire trapping each person in different areas. She growled angrily, seeing Maleficent swipe her tail towards Donald. The witch was dangerously close to stabbing Donald and her claws had almost crushed Goofy because the smoke was blinding them.

Beast needed a plan.

Sora

Sora's lungs burned for oxygen and she was more than a little light headed. Everywhere she turned was green flames but she kept remembering everything her new friends had taught her. Maleficent was going down but Sora just had to find a way-

It was a sudden thought and was more than stupid, after all she was delirious from the smoke but it startled her so much she froze.

 **The power of darkness.**

And then she realised it was probably Maleficent or some other dark entity like the heartless trying to prey on her in her weakened state. Sora may be weak physically but her heart was not weak. It was disconcerting, to have the darkness effect her so when it never had before but then again, Sora had never been as challenged as before nor as close to death when the all the worlds' safety rested on her shoulders.

But she remembered her friends, remembered her earlier words, and the dark feeling of unease left her and her keyblade warmed in her hands, and Sora felt more confident than ever.

…-But then the moment was over.

Sora had little time to gasp before she was sailing through the air, Maleficent's tail slamming into her. Once more she collided into the wall though there was no Donald here this time to heal her.

 _I guess if there's ever a time to use it..._

Sora pulled out her one and only elixir and swallowed, marvelling as her wounds were healed along with her energy restored. The smoked didn't even bother her as much as before when she stood back up. Still, Sora yelped as she barely dodged a claw which left deep gorge marks in the wall. She could hear loud tremors on the ground which could only be Maleficent moving towards her.

She needed to plan but the flames were preventing her from seeing much and Sora knew she needed to regroup if she wanted to stand a chance against the deadly dragon-

"The Great Ninja Yuffie is on the scene!"

Sora jumped as Yuffie appeared beside her, holding a rope that led upwards and seemed to be attached to the roof. "Y-Yuffie?!"

"Come on! Less talky, more climby! We're doomed if the rope catches fire!"

Sora quickly followed the advice, thankfully seeing Donald and Goofy already sitting on the beam the rope was tied to. Yuffie quickly appeared near her, looking completely relaxed as she walked on the wooden beam.

"Try your ice spell again." Beast said from nearby. "But this time freeze her mouth as well."

Sora nodded, getting her keyblade out and seeing the exhaustion on Donald's face. As Donald swallowed another ether, Sora found herself thankful the elixir helped her so much. She could only hope that there was no more battles after this.

Donald looked ready to drop.

Leon, Cloud, Cid and Aerith:

"It's gonna' be smooth sailin' from here." Cid grinned as they made their way into the castle.

A loud roar came from somewhere within.

"Aerith, stay behind me." Cloud said quietly as he and Leon got their weapons out while Cid continued to curse.

"Cid, enough cursing."

Cid grumbled a bit more before getting his cannon blaster out. "…I just know I'll be dead by the end of the day."

Sora, Donald, Goofy, Beast, Yuffie:

The blizzard spell rained down on dragon-Maleficent, who had spent the last few minutes getting distracted by Yuffie who darted everywhere at once. Maleficent immediately thrashed around as the ice formed on her legs and claws once more, preventing her from attacking.

"Now fellas!" Goofy shouted as Maleficent opened her jaw to spit fire

Shooting more ice, Maleficent practically howled as the ice landed in her throat, preventing her from breathing fire or even moving her jaws. But the ice didn't stop there, thickening around her jaw until the jet black dragon crashed to the ground because it was unable to support the humongous boulder of ice.

"Is it... over?" Sora said as she wiped some soot off her face.

As the smoke disappeared, what was meant to be a Maleficent-Dragon was just the remains of her black coat.

"The darkness in her heart consumed her." Beast said gravely and Sora was reminded of all the others who met the same end as Maleficent.

"Riku..." Sora murmured, her heart clenching with worry as she pictured Riku meeting that same end. Something was wrong with Riku and Sora had a feeling she was already too late.

There was no relaxation from defeating Maleficent. Sora still had two important friends to save.

A promise to keep.

 _Kairi, just wait. I'll get Riku back to normal and we'll both save you together, no matter what._

* * *

 **Me:** So yes, Yuffie arrives on time because the trio got lost and wasted precious time, allowing Yuffster to catch up!

 **Kairi:** Aren't you forgetting something?

 **Me:** Oh right. About the darkness thing? I've always wondered why the darkness got to Riku and never Sora. I mean, Kairi's a prince/ princess of heart so it stands he was 'pure of heart'. But Sora was just your everyday keyblade wielder, which means while she 'had a strong heart' she would still have darkness in her heart because everybody does. So I decided, why couldn't the darkness try to get to Sora when she is at her worst and most desperate to win? I could have done it earlier when she lost the keyblade but the idea only came to me after reading the reviews for last chapter.

 **Sorta:** You still have my name wrong...

 **Me:** What does everybody think of this change? Good? Bad? Missing a few obvious things? Spot on? Details are always good.

 **ps. I'm going to be unable to use internet for the next two weeks so can't update until 5th of Feb (Guess what?! I'm actually giving you all a date when I update next!)**

 **pss. Thanks all who have continiously given me feedback and Favorited/reviewed my story. This story has come a lot further than I ever thought it would and it's thanks to everyone here!**

 **psss. What do people think of the story pic of Sora? I just can't imagine a young female Sora showing anything but a cocky or confident face in a picture... Thoughts? And how should Sora look for KH2 story profile pic?**

 **pssss. Bye!**


	43. Promise Kept

**Me:** Yay! I'm back! I absolutely loved writing this chapter! Read ahead, my awesome readers!

* * *

"BEN!" Beast ran forward upon seeing a brown haired male sleeping behind some sort of barrier.

Looking around, Sora quickly realised Jasmoon and Ace were also sleeping behind a barrier. They had entered the tall and imposing room to see three princes of heart on one side and three on the other.

 _So six were captured... six princes of heart. But then, where's Kairi?!_

"Sora, look!" Yuffie pointed and Sora felt her feet moving before she could think.

"Kairi!"

Kairi lay unmoving on the platform above and Sora quickly ran up the stairs, gently shaking him but getting no reaction.

 _Come on, idiot! You promised we'd all be together! I can't... Not without you..._

"He won't wake."

Sora's head snapped up to see Riku watching her, the black keyblade in his hand. Donald and Goofy stared worriedly at each other and quickly went about trying to free the princes, knowing something was wrong. But then again, the crackling keyhole behind Riku seemed to pulse a dangerous air. Yuffie, on the other hand, remained near Sora encase she needed backup.

"Riku, Maleficent is gone! Snap out of it, you idiot! We can save Kairi together!" Sora sounded desperate, sensing there wasn't much time left before something bad would happen.

Riku chuckled darkly. "That boy has lost his heart but yes, you will definitely be able to help..."

 _That boy...? Is Riku referring to Kairi?!_

Sora narrowed her eyes, looking over Riku's posture and his...yellow eyes. "You're not Riku."

Congratulations." Not-Riku smirked. "Pity your friend only realised his mistake after he gave in to the darkness."

"...no. No, you're wrong!" Sora shouted, summoning her keyblade and running forward to attack the imposter only for Yuffie to appear in front of her.

"He's playing you!" Yuffie shouted. "Don't let your guard down around this guy!"

Narrowing her eyes again, Sora took a deep breath. "...Give Riku back his heart... _now._ "

 _I'll rescue you Riku..._

Not-Riku chuckled darkly. "But first, you must give the prince back his heart."

"What on earth's this boozo talking ab-SORA?!" Yuffie stopped talking as Sora gasped in pain, her heart feeling like it was about to rip out.

Her knees gave way and she felt as if white hot knives were stabbing her chest. Yuffie had her shrurikan out and Sora could have sworn she heard Donald and Goofy come running but it took all her effort not to collapse in agony.

"Urgh...!" Sora clenched her teeth, glaring up at Not-Riku. "You... Who are you?!"

"It is I... Ansem"

Yuffie gasped while Sora's eyes went wide.

"You... You're not dead?" Yuffie felt her own temper rise. "We read the reports! ... _YOUR_ reports! They really _were_ written by you-not by Maleficent! Then... It's because of _you_ the heartless appeared in Hollow Bastian! It's because of _you_ the heartless destroyed my home!"

"...and?" Ansem smirked.

"Damn you!" Yuffie howled, throwing her shurikan and rushing forward with a rage-filled face.

Sora wanted to scream at Yuffie that she was falling into a trap but she was too late. As Yuffie lunged for Ansem, some sort of dark force slammed into her, sending the ninja crashing down the stairs. It was then Sora noticed a barrier had been keeping Donald and Goofy unable to come up the stairs and to her aid.

"Yuffie!" Sora glared as Ansem pointed his blade towards her. "Give... them back! Give Riku and Kairi their hearts back! It was you, wasn't it? You really were the one who made Kairi lose his heart! As a stupid experiment, no less!"

"I told you-if you really want the boy to wake, _you_ must give him back his heart." Ansem said and Sora couldn't help but feel Riku's facial features looked twisted as Ansem controlled him. "After all... the prince's heart rests within you. Can you not feel his heart responding?"

Sora felt like the world had frozen as things began to click into place.

 _ **Sora... Don't give up... Pay attention...**_

"...and now I shall give the prince back his heart-" Not-Riku began but Sora launched up, keyblade in hand as she attacked while his guard was down.

Ansem seemed surprised but in his speech, didn't have time to dodge. As such, Sora's keyblade hit its mark and Ansem staggered back, disappearing, as if he had never been there in the first place.

That was anti-climatical.

"...That... sucked..." Yuffie muttered as she, Donald and Goofy came to stand next to Sora, who got up slowly.

"I... would never let him take Kairi's heart again." Sora scowled at the spot where Ansem was. "But... Where's Riku...?"

A loud crackling was heard and something inside Sora seemed to scream that they were in a lot of danger unless that keyhole was closed.

"Sora!" Donald nodded, holding his staff out encase any more heartless decided to visit.

Aiming the keyblade at the keyhole...

...nothing happened.

"It's incomplete..." Sora muttered, looking at Kairi's unconscious body with a clenching heart. "We can't close the keyhole because it's incomplete..."

"So what do we do now?" Yuffie complained before her eyes widened as they all heard shouting coming from near the doorway. "Is that... Cid?"

"Yup! It's his swearin' alright! Hyuk!" Goofy laughed, going to the edge of the platform to watch Leon's gang come through. "We're up here, fellas!"

"Are you all alright?!" Aerith asked suddenly, somehow becoming amazingly fast and running up the stairs quicker than everyone could blink. "Where's Sora?! Are you sure nobody's injured-"

"We're fine!" Yuffie grinned before getting whacked over the head by Cid as he, Cloud and Leon appeared. "And Sora's over near Kairi-"

"Sora, what are you doing?!" Donald shouted in alarm as Sora picked up Ansem's keyblade.

"...A keyblade with the power to unlock peoples' hearts..." Sora gently placed her own keyblade on the ground before positioning the weapon in her hand directly on her heart.

"STOP!"

She wasn't sure who shouted as she plunged Ansem's keyblade into her chest, only that she hoped somebody would have the mind to close the keyhole using her keyblade when it was finally complete.

When Kairi finally got his heart back.

Sora surrendered to the darkness.

Unknown Time and Place:

 _Falling... Falling... Into darkness..._

A brief flash of Kairi getting up, running with a horror-filled face towards Sora.

 _Kai...ri... That boy... Who... is he...?_

A brief flash of a duck and a dog.

 _I... I know them... I think... They... they are my...?_

A dark cold seemed to seep into the girl and if she could scream, she would have. Instead, she was numb as the darkness seeped into her, no means of escape as despair clawed at her and an empty, hollow feeling throbbed within her chest.

" _ **I won't let her go!"**_

The girl's eyes snapped open and she found herself on some sort of stone path. "What...?"

 _Who... Who spoke...? I... I know that voice... It's..._

"...Sora?"

The girl would have started walking but something about that name halted her. Then there was the voice, which wasn't in her head but as if there was somebody here... Near her.

"Sora! It's me, Riku!"

The girl blinked, looking up into amazingly bright blue eyes in the black void she found herself in. Since when was there colour in this dark realm? And since when did she feel warm, as if she was alive?

"Please answer me!" the boy said desperately, shaking as her blank expression continued to unnerve him. "I'm sorry! _I'm sorry_! You were right! But damn it- _don't_ fade away! Think of Kairi and me! SORA!"

 _Fade... Away...?_

Looking down distantly at her arms, the girl realised she really _was_ beginning to fade away. Huh. She wondered what Kairi would thin- _ **Kairi**_ _._ The name was an anchor that she desperately tried to hold onto.

Her semi-transparent hands became more solid.

"That's right! Don't give in! Kairi will kick your butt if he catches you sleeping again! I'll even admit you're better than me!"

" _ **I won't forget Sora! She isn't gone!"**_

 _That voice..._ _ **Kairi**_ _... And this person... this is..._

"...Riku...?" the girl said unsurely and Riku choked in relief.

"Y-You took your time...!" Riku chuckled weakly as Sora's eyes widened as flashes of what happened entered her mind.

"You... You look well..." Sora laughed weakly. "So you.. obviously haven't lost your heart?"

"I... I haven't disappeared yet so obviously not." Riku admitted. "Same as you, Sora."

Sora didn't agree or disagree with that, changing the subject instead ( _because I know I've lost my heart. The only things remaining... Are the memories... I can't... feel much... and even now... it's fading...)_. "I told you I'd help... Kairi... without hurting anyone... See...?"

Sora didn't mention how it took her a few moments to remember Kairi's name.

She began to fade again.

"Sora? Hey! Don't you dare-"

"You know already..." Sora said weakly. "My... heart..."

"No! You... you said your heart was with your friends! I... I'm...-"

"And that... is why I can be here... right now...With... one of my...best friends..." Sora's legs had completely faded now. "...To... say goodbye..."

"NO! DAMN IT! IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN ME IN YOUR PLACE! DON'T YOU DARE-"

"I...I just wanted... to say I'm sorry...Ri..." Sora's mind went blank before another memory came and she struggled to hold onto it (and was it getting colder or was it her?). "...Riku... I helped... many people... helped... Ka...Kairi... but... I... failed you..."

"YOU DIDN'T! I FAILED YOU! I _LET_ DARKNESS INTO MY HEART! JUST DON'T GIVE UP! YOU'RE STRONGER THAN THIS! SORA?! SORA!"

Sora's body faded and the last thing Riku saw were her eyes, shining blue as they looked at him with as if he was a stranger. As if she had forgotten who he was. As if she had forgot who she herself was.

Sora disappeared into darkness.

* * *

 **Me:** So currently I'm looking for a job but there's just so many qualifications needed now adays! How am I even meant to start?

 **Sorta:** Stop complaining! I mean, look at me! You're _still_ spelling my name wrong... and I'm beginning to believe you're doing it on purpose!

 **Me:** *smiles innocently* Whatever do you mean?


	44. Gone

**Me:** Hey all! I'm honestly debating whether I should update quicker (like I did now). Because usually I write a chapter and edit it, wait a day and then re-edit it to check if I've missed any mistakes. But I _can_ update quicker by just editing once and then a second time before I post it.

 **Sora:** Get to the point of **why** you're telling them this!

 **Me:** *laughs bashfully* Right. Well, I was hoping people can rate this chapter compared to my previous chapters. I want to know if this is better quality or lower quality or seems exactly the same as the previous ones.

 **Sora: This is very important to Mearad so we'd really appreciate if you could review!**

* * *

"…Sora…?" Kairi's hands were still outstretched to catch Sora… but there was only empty space. _Nothing._

"Come back SORA!" Donald howled as he looked at the shinning lights fading away above them. "You idiot! COME BACK!"

But Sora had vanished. _Gone._

There was silence as everybody just stared in numb shock at the place Sora had… done what she did. It was as if everybody was holding their breaths, waiting for the moment the energetic brunette would suddenly jump out from behind them and say 'Surprise! Scared you, didn't I?'

…But there was nothing. Sora had disappeared.

"No… NO!" Yuffie shouted in denial, running forward and waving her arms in the spot Sora had been. It was as if she hoped to find out Sora was only invisible. Invisible but _still there_. Tangible.

…But that wasn't the case because Sora was _gone_ and she wasn't coming back.

But even as it finally started to sink in, there was no time to mourn. The keyhole started crackling eerily, dark wisps flying out. Every second, more yellow eyes seemed to appear from the keyhole and it was with sudden shock everyone realised that heartless were coming.

…Way too many to handle.

" _Shit!_ " Leon cursed , gunblade already in his hand. "We need to move!"

"But…!" Yuffie looked as if she was in physical pain. "We can't just-"

"She's gone, Yuffie." Leon said stoically, taking charge. "We _have_ to move."

Kairi felt the words echo in his head. Gone, gone, gone- _NO! NOT GONE! SORA ISN'T GOING ANYWHERE!_

"I won't let her go!" Kairi shouted, angry tears pooling down his face. "If I got my heart , Sora can too!"

"How quaint."

Everyone turned to see a man with dark skin and amber eyes, his white hair extending down his back.

"Ansem the Wise." Aerith said softly and as one, the whole group drew closer together, Cloud and Leon taking threatening steps forward in warning.

Ansem chuckled darkly. "Yes, wise indeed. I know all there is to know. And thanks to you, prince, the keyhole is complete. I will be led to the Door and find everlasting darkness!"

"Where's Riku?!" Kairi shouted instead, because if he allowed himself to think of Sora-

"Gone." Ansem smirked. "Just like you all will be."

"You can't defeat us!" Yuffie glared even as Donald and Goofy stood near Kairi in an effort to protect the only defenceless person.

"I don't have to." Ansem smirked, clicking his fingers.

At once, the heartless surrounded them. Not only coming from the keyhole but from the walls, the floors, the ceiling and basically everywhere the group could look. There was so many the room seemed to be glowing with yellow eyes.

There wasn't even anywhere to escape to.

Ansem laughed cruelly before disappearing into the keyhole.

"We can't fight them…" Aerith bit her lip as the heartless began to move.

"We can and we will." Cid said gruffly, his machine gun ready. "I've set the ship to come pick us up. Be ready for the ceiling to- **MOVE, KID!** "

Kairi yelped as a heartless launched at him. Cid blasted the heartless away but more were already taking its place. As such, Kairi was forced to move back so Donald could use thunder to blast the next batch to smithereens. But all too soon Donald was already fighting his own battle and Kairi had to move again, cursing how he had to be protected because he couldn't fight at all. Why did he never really engage with Sora and Riku in playfighting on the island?! Where was the skills he needed-

A dagger impaled itself in the heartless which had launched in the air towards him. The heartless disappeared and the dagger sank into the ground in front of Kairi. Not stopping to think, Kairi pulled it out and miserably fail at slashing at a heartless nearby, overestimating his swing and sending himself crashing to the ground anyway.

"Careful!" a guy helped Kairi up, casually using an identical dagger to stab another bigger heartless in the face.

Kairi couldn't even voice his thanks, trying to desperately get a lung full of air to subside the panic of nearly losing his heart again. He wouldn't, he couldn't- _not when Sora sacrificed herself for him-_

"Jasmoon!" Goofy laughed, interrupting Kairi's thoughts. "I'm glad you're no longer snoozing, ahyuk!"

"Yeah. But it seems we've gotten ourselves into a bit of a pickle, haven't we?" Jasmoon grinned as he nodded to Kairi. "Hold on tight to that dagger and let's finish this!"

Other males who must've been the other princes of heart joined in the battle, using whatever they could to help fight (Kairi could have sworn there was even a huge beast-like creature helping them). But the heartless kept coming and the group was slowly becoming overwhelmed as exhaustion set in.

"There's no end to them!" Kairi shouted, stabbing a heartless in the face (rather awkwardly, he might add).

"Cid! When does the ship get here?!" Leon roared, his gunblade moving ten miles a second as he took out the majority of heartless with Cloud by his side.

"It shoulda' been here by now!" Cid cursed. "There must be a problem!"

Outer Space

Heartless ships swarmed around, coming directly from Hollow Bastion, destroying Cid's ship and what remained from the ship Yuffie had borrowed. Chip and Dale struggled to get the gummi ship out of the way of missiles and hostile enemies combined.

Ansem

"This power…" Ansem grinned darkly. "The heart of all worlds…! The door has been revealed…!"

Ansem exited the keyhole, smirking as the group of fighters struggled to keep going. They were fools, the lot of them. They would all die here because the flow of heartless won't end so long as the keyhole is still open. A white blade on the ground caught Ansem's attention and he frowned as he saw the keyblade on the ground. The wielder must've left it before she lost her heart.

Ansem started walking towards it, a smirk coming onto his face as the newly awakened prince of heart moved towards the keyblade as well.

Kairi (a few seconds earlier)

 _What to do?! What to do?!_

Kairi looked around, once more weaponless (he had lost the dagger Jasmoon had given him when a heartless had knocked it out of his hands). There was too many heartless to even risk fighting now and things were looking grim.

 _But I can't give up… How will I get Sora back…? And Riku…_

It was as if the answer seemed to come straight to him.

The keyhole.

All the heartless by now were coming from the keyhole… Which meant the keyhole just needed to be closed. Kairi could not recall that much from merging his heart with Sora's but he remembered enough that the keyblade could lock keyholes. Kairi rushed towards Sora's keyblade, his heart beating furiously in his chest as adrenaline urged him on that extra mile when he saw Ansem walking towards it as well.

It was a race Kairi wasn't willing to lose. He had always preferred to sit on the sidelines back on the island but not now.

Not now because his friends needed him.

Not when Sora had sacrificed herself to give him his heart back.

This time, Kairi was going to help them. His precious friends. And to do that, he needed to get out of here alive.

He lunged for the keyblade just as Ansem reached it. His hands wrapped around the hilt and Kairi had a second of elated joy at grabbing the one weapon that could save them…

…when the keyblade disappeared from Kairi's hand.

" _ **The keyblade chooses it's master."**_

" _ **Beggers can't be choosers."**_

Kairi felt his whole world crash and burn as those words echoed in his head. They were probably from Sora's experiences and suddenly he _knew_. Kairi wasn't the chosen wielder of the keyblade so picking it up made it disappear…

"And now this is the end for you. You are of no further use." Ansem began darkly…

…only for his whole body to tense up.

"W-W-What?!"

Kairi was positive it wasn't his doing stopping Ansem so…? And then he saw a glowing outline of Riku. "R-Riku…?"

"Hurry!" Riku's eyes were frantic even as Ansem wrestled back control of his body. "The heartless-there's even more! You have to run!"

Kairi was conflicted. He wanted to run but at the same time, he wanted to stay and fight. Riku was _fine_ -he was right here in front of him! How could he just leave his friend? Seeing everybody else fight the heartless too-it would be impossible for them all to leave unscathed!

He…

Kairi suddenly knew.

He _couldn't_ leave. He _had_ to aid his friends.

He _had_ to help them!

A flash of white light enveloped Kairi and suddenly something was in his hands. Barely daring to hope, Kairi looked down and his heart leapt.

In his hands, different from both Sora's and Riku's, was a keyblade.

Kairi's eyes immediately flickered to Riku, who was staring just as wide eyed at him. But then Riku vanished and Kairi was quick to scramble to his feet as Ansem finally got his bearings back.

"GO! CLOSE THE KEYHOLE!"

Leon (or at least Kairi distantly remembered that was the man's name) was quick to engage Ansem in a fight. Holding his pink and flowery keyblade (in all honestly, Kairi knew Sora and Riku would never let him live that fact down), he pointed it right at the keyhole. A beam of light shot out, hitting the keyhole. There was a sound like a door closing and then the loud crackling stopped.

Kairi yelped as a heartless clawed at him, realising quickly while the heartless may have stopped coming, they still had a load left here in the room with them.

"Alright…" Kairi muttered, small flashes (memories?) going in his head of how best to use a keyblade. "Let's finish this…!"

Kairi darted forward.

* * *

 **Me:** Did anybody expect Kairi to get his keyblade?

 **EXPLANATION: KAIRI'S KEYBLADE**

Basically, I have no idea why Riku just _handed_ Kairi a keyblade in KH2. So I looked at other factors for why Kairi would have gotten a keyblade. Factors such as:

1\. Kairi was determined to help fight and defeat the nobodies.

2\. Kairi wanted to help Riku and Sora and NOT be left behind.

 _In other words, Kairi had the strength of heart and the will to fight._

Because the Kairi in my story has already reached this point, I gave him a keyblade. But it wasn't just that which caused my choice. The female Kairi never expected to fight in KH1 (which is why she never put up much of a fight when Sora says she'll get in the way). On the other hand, a male Kairi (based off stereotypical gender norms and such) would not tolerate sending his friends fighting battles _for_ guys have social peer pressure or expectations that they protect others and so I'd wager that a male Kairi would have gotten his keyblade much quicker than a female one because he thought he had to fight to protect his friends much quicker than a female Kairi would have thought.

Please note: While I'm probably going into dangerous territory, I am by no means hinting or supporting any gender stereotypes that people think. I am only putting in what I believe a male Kairi would have reacted like. After all, my story is genderbent for a reason. If everything stayed the same, there would be no point to my story, right?

ps. Kairi will not directly state this as his thoughts on fighting is just a subconscious thing of how he feels. (and don't forget, he's still only 14 so would probably not be that aware of how society shaped him).

 **Sora:** That was a long explanation!

 **Me:** It was, wasn't it? Please don't forget to rate this chapter compared to previous chapters. Did it sound better/worse/the same quality? How and why?


	45. It, The Heartless

**Me:** What is a mouseses favourite game?

 **Sora:** Parcheesy!

 **Kairi:** *shakes his head* Idiots... Anyways, Mearad doesn't own Kingdom Hearts or any of the Disney/Final Fantasy characters.

* * *

Its POV:

 _Hearts. Food. Feed._

The heartless surrounded their prey, eager and excited. There was so many to eat and their prey was weakening. They'd surely get some good meals today! And there was a keybearer as well ( _danger, consume, feast_ ) so taking the big one out of the fight meant-

 _ **How will I get So-…**_

The heartless paused _ **.**_

Around it the battle still raged. It's fellow comrades fought, their leader giving them orders on where and how to attack their prey. Yet for a moment, _a small moment_ , the heartless paused and was sure it felt bewildered at its own actions. _Why_ was it pausing?

"You'll never win!" their leader cackled and then the bewildered heartless was quickly overrun with the instinct to fight again. After all, their leader was giving them hearts to eat and if they were lucky, _he'd_ become weak and they could consume his heart too!

It was a win-win situation and they were going to feast!

 _ **He had to aid his friends!**_

The heartless stopped in the middle of a mid air attack, once more bewildered. As a result, it immediately fell towards the ground. Upon impact, the heartless sunk into the ground as its instincts screamed to hide. It wasn't sure how long it stayed in the ground, only that it watched ( _cautiously?_ ) its prey ( _humans?_ ) and refused to listen to their leader.

"CLOSE THE KEYHOLE!"

Something was wrong. It shouldn't be disobeying its leader. What purpose would that hold? How would it get food ( _Kairi's heart?_ ). The heartless hissed suddenly as that thought echoed in its head. Since when did prey have a name and since when did heartless think?

It could feel its brethren getting agitated when the white beam shot out. Briefly it _too_ felt dismay that their feast wouldn't be that much of a feast because they couldn't consume the world also. But then its attention was focused solely on one of their prey and-

 _ **Sora and Riku would never let him live that fact down-**_

And it made a sound of distress when memories started to flow in its head ( _this shouldn't be possible. This shouldn't be possible-_ _Thinking_ _shouldn't be possible_ ). Its brethren were actually losing now, with no more to back them up, their prey was wiping them out. But still, they wanted a meal and weren't going without one. Distantly, it could sense that the other heartless sensed something in it.

But it could not move. The shock, the confusion, the _feelings_ and _memories_ left it unable to even _consider_ moving. It wasn't ( _shouldn't be_ ) a heartless. It wasn't an 'it'. It had a life before this. It had a heart ( _but it was gone now, wasn't it?_ ). So where was its heart? It was seeking hearts to make up for that fact, right?

 _My heart is with my friends._

The heartless shook its head, hissing again as its brethren inched closer to it, knowing there was something there. But that wasn't it, was it? The heartless looked at the human who had awakened whatever that something inside it was. The red hair (huh, it knew colour?) and the weird keyb- _that was Kairi_ , _wasn't it?_

Moving the ground, the heartless appeared right next to Kairi who had just taken out one of its brethren ( _not brethren because it wasn't a heartless)_. It hesitated because for an insane second, it wanted to attack the keybearer ( _danger, consume, feast_ ) but it had the strength (memories? Friends? Where was this coming from?). But it knew the answer because something within the prey ( _Kairi, remember?_ ) was keeping it anchored to its previous-ness before the heartless ( _heartless had a time before heartless?_ ).

"…Sora?"

The heartless looked up at him ( _Kairi_ ) and it was as if a blinding light flashed in its eyes. It could _see_ and _feel_ and _know_. This was _Kairi_ , one of its best friends. The other prey were its newly made friends who had been with it throughout its journey. It couldn't consume them! They were its friends!

It moved closer to Kairi, wanting to know more ( _Kairi called itself Sora, didn't he?_ ) and feel more but it was only then it realised its brethren had them surrounded. _No! It can't take away its only chance at a heart! It knew somehow this boy had the key to… something! Something which was better than it!_

"SORA!" the boy ran at it, wrapping his arms around it.

It had a brief feeling of pure warmth, love and joy and then nothing.

It was as if a cloak had been lifted off and then suddenly _it was no longer it. It was_ _Sora._

"Kairi…" Sora whispered in awe, feeling the darkness recede inside her (because she knew darkness was a part of every heart but Kairi had gotten her back and that was all that mattered). "…Thank you."

Kairi's POV:

Hands. Feet. Shining blue eyes. Spiky brown hair. A body.

Sora was really here.

Alive.

"…Sora…?" Kairi couldn't believe it.

The heartless surrounding them seemed to have evaporated from the intense light that had burst from Sora. The others could see that Sora had somehow come back to them (Donald was racing towards them with the most enraged yet happy face Kairi had ever seen) but they focused on the battle. Kairi suddenly realised they too had to help finish off the last of the heartless and deal with Ansem. The battle wasn't over yet.

Sora's POV:

"A part of me always remains in my friends…" Sora laughed softly, gently squeezing Kairi's hand before summoning her keyblade and turning to the remaining few heartless.

 _Like I talked to Riku even after I lost my heart… Kairi never gave up on me and somehow I heard his heart crying out to me. He became the anchor to giving me back my heart._

Kairi had tears falling down his face and but he didn't acknowledge them, only stand next to Sora with the weapon in his hands-

"IS THAT A KEYBLADE?!" Sora's mouth dropped open and she forgot all her serious inner-monologue as she stared at the flowery-petal keyblade. "HAHAHAHA! OH MAN, I CAN'T BELIEVE IT! HAHAHA!"

Kairi smiled sweetly… before whacking her over the head. "PAY ATTENTION, STUPID!"

"Ow…." Sora rubbed her head before smiling sheepishly. "Right! Let's go stop Ansem and save Riku together!"

Sora darted forward, her keyblade in her hand seeming to pulsate strength and energy to fight. Lunging at Ansem, her attempt failed as the villain quickly managed to summon some type of heartless/shadow/thing and block the attack. Surprisingly (or not so surprisingly) that heartless was attached to Ansem and acted like a guardian. Ansem had his hands folded and barely seemed bothered at all (even by Leon's attacks and that was saying something).

 _Well, if one can't beat him on his own… Let's see how well Ansem fairs facing two people!_

Leon shot her a small smirk and they silently agreed to tag-team against Ansem.

Aerith's healing spell washed over her and Sora allowed herself a moment to recover her breath. She could see Kairi helping the princes of heart to clean out the rest of the heartless with Donald and Goofy aiding him. Yuffie, Cid and Cloud were working together to take down a humongous heartless (a behemoth, some dark voice in her mind whispered).

Sora shivered but wasn't scared because she knew the light in her heart would always win against the darkness. Her friends would never give up on her so darkness would never consume her. And Riku…

 _If Kairi could get to me when I was lost in the darkness, I won't give up on you either. Together, me and Kairi will get you back. No matter what._

"Fools!" Ansem clutched his arm (Donald had managed to throw a thunder at him when he wasn't looking). "You understand _nothing!_ "

A blast of dark energy smashed into the ground, sending everyone off their feet.

There was panicked voices as everyone tried to get the smoke out of their faces.

"Sora!" Kairi grabbed her hand when Donald finally cast a wind spell to blow the smoke away. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Where's Ansem?" Sora felt her heart sink when she saw everybody but the one who held the key to Riku.

Ansem had disappeared.

* * *

 **Me:** The end of another chapter! What do you think will happen next? Cid's ship is destroyed and the gummi ship is unknown (but hopefully we can count on Chip and Dale). Will Kairi go with them or...

 **Sora:**...

 **Me:** I know, I _know_. I shouldn't be asking obvious questions, should I? On another note, **should Roxas be a male or female?** He's Sora's nobody but he's got Ventus's heart, right (based off limited knowledge I have anyway).


	46. End of the World

**Me:** Hey all! You know, I'm kinda' embarrassed. I was talking to my brother about whether Roxas should be male or female. You know what he said?

 **Sora:** He said Kairi's heart was in mine all along and yet I didn't change into a boy (haha- _yes,_ I _do_ get the gender bender pun).

 **Me:** Exactly! So basically Roxas **will be a girl even though he has Ventus's heart** _._ If Kairi and Sora (different genders) work, so will Sora's nobody and Ventus's heart. Because we all know we need some strange occurrences and all that! Thanks for offering your advice and opinions, everyone!

* * *

Gummi Ship

"Sora?" Kairi appeared next to the girl in question who was busy staring out the window.

The ship itself was struggling to function properly but they were managing so far. The damage from the onslaught of heartless in space had nearly destroyed the gummi ship but luckily Chip and Dale had managed to land it in Hollow Bastion in partly-working condition. Unfortunately, the duo had been injured in the process and were forced to stay behind so Aerith could heal them.

…Which meant the gummi ship had to last until they reached their final destination. There was nobody who could repair the ship on the way to where they were going.

To the huge source of darkness that was swallowing the universe… The place where Ansem had most likely disappeared to.

 _And if we defeat Ansem and lock the darkness away, the hearts of the worlds will be released from his grasp. Everything will reset and go back to normal…_

Suspiciously enough, there was not a single heartless ship near them at the moment. There _should_ have been even a few because they were nearing a mass of darkness in which the heartless thrived and possibly came from. Yet there wasn't even one and all they could do was remain alert and ready.

…and possibly fill the empty silence with talk.

"You know, I came from Hollow Bastion." Kairi admitted, grinning sheepishly.

"…What?" Sora's mouth dropped open.

"Hyuk! Sora, ya' never told us that!" Goofy turned his head to smile good-naturedly at Sora.

"I didn't even know!" Sora protested before turning bewildered back to Kairi. "Are you serious?!"

"Yeah… It seemed _actually_ being there helped me remember what little childhood memories I had from my first home world."

Sora looked puzzled for a moment. "Oh… So that's why I found it familiar when we first landed there."

Kairi looked startled before realisation dawned in him. "That's right. We were together, weren't we?"

"… Our hearts were never apart." Sora grinned. "Just like they'll never truly be apart from our friends."

 _Riku…_

Even now, Sora just _knew_ Riku would be able to come back to them. Because there was always a way.

Kairi seemed to know Riku was on her mind for he asked the next question hesitantly. "…Do you think things will ever be the same between-"

"WAK! Heartless ships!"

Sora and Kairi immediately bustled into action, aiming the lazer guns at their followers.

The heartless came by the dozens, surrounding them in seconds. The strategy and coordination… The heartless had been planning an ambush.

"Wak! We won't lose!" Donald turned to them all, his eyes alight with fierceness. "Let's go get 'em!"

"Right!" Sora cheered, blowing up one of the heartless ships that were flanking them. "After this, it's all over…!"

 _Just hold on Riku… We'll get you back! Because if defeating Ansem releases the worlds, maybe, just maybe… Riku will be released too. Maybe he'll regain control of his body again. And if not, we'll find a way! I believe there is always a way!_

Later (still in Gummi Ship)

"Wak… There's heartless everywhere." Donald frowned. "Goofy, make sure Sora and Kairi are protected, you big paloka."

"…I don't need protecting."

"Take this, Sora." Kairi took out some sort of star charm. "It's my lucky charm."

"…I said I don't need protecting… and besides, _you're_ the one who needs the luck more than me, Kairi! You've only been fighting for an hour with your keyblade!"

Kairi winced. "I just… I don't want you to lose your heart again. Just take it for me?"

Sora was about to object until she saw just how worried Kairi, Donald and Goofy actually seemed. This caught her by surprise because even after she lost her heart, she still came back to them. Besides, it wasn't like she'd lose her heart again. And she definitely would never be consumed by the darkness completely.

 _Now how to convince them…_

"Hey guys? …You know that I was lost in the darkness and became a heartless. I mean, it was obvious." Sora began, seeing them all frown in confusion about where this topic was heading. "…but the light _still_ reached me. I was still able to come back because you never gave up on me!"

"…" Donald, Goofy and Kairi looked unsurely at each other.

"So long as I have my friends, I'll never truly be consumed by the darkness. Your voices will _always_ bring me back. So stop worrying, okay? We won't be able to beat Ansem's butt if we're only half focused!"

"Ayuk! That's true, ain't it?" Goofy smiled brightly, holding out his hand for a team hurrah. "All for one and one for all!"

"Right!" both Sora and Donald put their hands on top of Goofy's before waiting for Kairi to do the same.

Kairi sweat dropped. They _really_ did this? …But then again, this _was_ Sora he was talking about…

"…Alright…" Kairi snorted, finally placing his hands on too. "All for one and one for all, was it? Sounds great… even though I think it's cheesy."

"Oh, speaking of cheese, do you have Aerith's sandwiches?" Sora asked brightly. "I'm hungry!"

Back when they had been preparing to leave Hollow Bastion, Aerith had handed them a basket full of sandwiches. Somehow she _always_ remembered to pack food for them no matter the circumstances (Sora thought Aerith was kinda' like a mother hen).

… _I'll miss her…. And everyone else too…_

Because if Sora fixed everything, all the worlds will return to their normal, isolated selves. In other words, Sora wouldn't be able to travel between worlds. There was no way to go around the system which meant Sora would never see her other-world friends again.

" _ **Even so…" Leon looked at Sora and Yuffie. "Our hearts are always connected. We'll never truly be apart and the memories will never go away."**_

… _Right. I should never forget that our hearts will never truly separate._

"Wak! I can see our destination ahead! Sora, get your lazy ass in that chair now before you fall out the window again!" Donald quacked.

"But I haven't finished eating!" Sora whined.

Kairi raised an eyebrow. "…You've been shoving food in your mouth for the past fifteen minutes."

"Hyuk, that sounds like Sora, alright!" Goofy laughed.

"No it doesn't!"

"Wak, wak, wak!"

"Shut up, Donald!"

"You're the one talking with your mouth open~" Kairi laughed.

"…Why… does this relentless teasing feel so familiar?" Sora sighed, dismayed. "And I thought we were passed that stage on Destiny Islands…"

"Enough whining! Seatbelt. _NOW_!" Donald demanded.

End of the World

The four of them disembarked, immediately seeing floating pieces of land. Dark shadows flickered in-between them but for the most part seemed content to stay in their own areas. But still, each floating piece of land looked to be the remains of some sort of structure. It almost seemed as if they were remains of…

"Gwarsh, are these what remains of the worlds taken by the heartless?" Goofy asked, summarising Sora's thoughts.

"Possibly…" Kairi turned to Sora. "…Do you think our island is here?"

"It has to be, doesn't it?"

With that final sentence, the four of them moved forward. In the distance was the swirling mass of darkness the princes of heart had been talking about. It was there they would most likely find Ansem.

"Look out!"

That was the only warning they got before a huge sphere of darkness invaded their vision.

A few seconds later, the mist cleared and the group found themselves in another area. But they had no time to think as suddenly the heartless had them surrounded. It was yet another ambush except they didn't have the gummi ship as protection this time. Not only that, there was also a huge behemoth heartless charging up for an attack.

 _If that attack goes off…._

"I won't let you!" Sora dashed passed the other heartless, slamming the keyblade into the behemoth's leg.

It made a noise of protest before smashing its foot down where she had been only moments before. It continued that pattern for some time, rampaging around and trying to squish her.

 _But now's my chance…!_

Sora darted behind it and launched herself onto its back. She continued upwards, wobbling dangerously towards its head in an effort to stab the keyblade in its eye. Past experience from her battles with Clayton's chameleon heartless and the Darkside would hopefully make her successful in this attack too.

 _All huge heartless have one major weakness and that's the eyes! They're easy to target and hit!_

Sinking the keyblade downwards, the behemoth gave one loud screech before shuddering. It shook its head around feebly but Sora was already casting a fire spell into its other eye. It gave off no warning as it suddenly disappeared in a puff of purple-black smoke, nearly causing Sora to crash into the ground. Barely landing on the ground safely, Sora had no time to rest as her defeated opponent was merely replaced with a bunch more of humanoid looking pure black heartless.

The battle was far from over-

"THUNDER!" Kairi shouted from somewhere behind them and immediately a huge explosion went off.

 _Urgh… Stupid, using spells without even being taught how…! But…! I can use this distraction!_

"Take this!" Not even stopping to think, Sora used that moment to eliminate two of the heartless, moving onto a flying one which wielded some sort of dangerous looking sword and was swinging it around with deadly accuracy.

In the background as she locked weapons with the heartless, Sora could hear Donald scolding Kairi for attempting spell casting when he hadn't even had any practice.

"You idiot! You need intent and practice to use spells correctly!"

"Really?" Kairi sounded out of breath and more than a little sarcastic. "Well then… THUNDER!"

… _What…?!_

There was no explosion.

 _H-How the…?! T-That's so not fair!_

Actual bolts. Actual bolts came down, zapping the heartless and electrocuting them until they all disappeared.

"WHA!" Sora yelped as some stray bolts nearly hit her. Fortunately, Goofy came to her rescue and quickly used his shield to deflect the bolts away from them.

 _Phew! That was lucky!_

"Thanks Goofy!" Sora smiled.

"Nothin' to it, hyuk!"

"Everyone okay?" Kairi jogged up to them. "I'm glad that's over with- _OWW_!"

Donald whacked him over the head, twitching madly. "I said _don't cast_! You're worse than Sora at listening!"

"Hey!"

Kairi scowled. "I still got them, didn't I?"

"But ah… Kairi, ya' nearly got us too." Goofy admitted.

His eyes widened. "What…? I… I'm sorry… Wait…. Sora? Where're you going?"

Sora had moved away from them after a few seconds and quickly waved them over to her direction. "There's this weird smoke…"

A light beam was near her, glowing brightly and as high in the sky as they could see.

 _But why is there light… in a place like this…?_

Moving closer, Sora went to touch it but it didn't have the desired effect of her hand simply going through. Instead, the four of them were once again transported to another area.

"…Traverse Town?" Sora muttered, a sinking feeling in her chest.

"Gwarsh, Atlantica's over here too!"

"There seems to be a lot of worlds here…" Kairi frowned. "Does this mean… They've been swallowed by the darkness already?"

 _But… So quickly? Just how fast is the darkness moving throughout the worlds?_

The keyblade suddenly appeared in Sora's hand. Eyes widening at seeing Kairi's keyblade appear too, the four of them looked at one another. The keyblade seemed to give off a warmth in her direction and Sora suddenly _knew_ the keyblade was leading her to the right place.

"Come on." Sora began walking.

A small circular room (with an ancient-looking door at the end)

 _ **Be careful.**_

Sora startled. How long had it been since she last heard that weird voice?

 _Wait… Back then, it talked about 'opening the door'…_

There was a door right in front of her… This was the door it was talking about. From before her journey began to now… Everything depended on these following moments. She would open the door now.

 _ **But don't be afraid.**_

Sora nodded despite knowing nobody else could hear the voice. She had the keyblade with her and her friends were her power. She didn't need to be afraid. She _would_ defeat Ansem and bring Riku back.

 _ **Beyond this point is no light to protect you…**_

 _But I carry light within me, within my friends._

 _ **Your heart is the mightiest weapon of all.**_

 _That's right. My friends' make my heart stronger._

 _ **Remember: You are the one who will open the door to the light.**_

 _Because… Even in darkness, there will always be a light. No matter how deep you get lost in it._

Sora had a sudden flash back.

 _ **Sora had moved away from them after a few seconds and quickly waved them over to her direction. "There's this weird smoke…"**_

 _ **A light beam was near her, glowing brightly and as high in the sky as they could see.**_

 _ **But why is there light… in a place like this…?**_

 _Even the worlds which were consumed by the heartless… There was still that light. There will always be a light in the darkness!_

It was time to stop Ansem and the darkness. Sora took a deep breath and pushed open the door.

* * *

 **Me:** You know, this chapter took a lot out of me! I just couldn't find the right words and nothing worked. I had to rewrite it a lot (which was a bit irritating). But alas, here is my piece and I hope it suffices!

 **Kairi:** Wait! Is next chapter the last chapter? ...Hello? Are you even listening to me?!


	47. Kingdom Hearts

**Me:** Yes, this is the **final chapter!** However, I'll be posting an extra for Pooh Bear's World (Which will also state when KH2 Story is being started). Thanks all who have read up to now! Tell me where you would like improvements for KH2 story or suggestions.

* * *

"This…" Kairi sounded mystified as they stepped through the door. "We're on the island, aren't we?"

"Yeah… Just like all the other worlds swallowed by the darkness… There is still a small part left. A light that can never go out." Sora started walking across the sand. "Ansem's probably trying to distract us by choosing here as his hiding place…"

"Ah… Nope. He's over there" Goofy pointed. "Watchin' the sea, I think."

Sora's eyes widened as she saw the form of Riku. "RIKU!"

 _Did he get his heart back?!_

Running forward, Sora was only a metre away from Riku when Kairi grabbed her hand and yanked her back. "It's not him! Can't you feel it?!"

Sora looked bewildered. _Feel what exactly?!_

"That's right. You cannot reach him where he is." Riku's body faded to reveal Ansem's full appearance as he turned to face them. "This island was a cage to the boy and seeking freedom, he opened his heart to the darkness."

The mini island suddenly vanished and Sora's eyes widened. The ocean water disappeared only to be replaced with the dark colour of countless heartless mindlessly together. But if the heartless were here… They were consuming the only remains of her home!

"We'll get him back!" Kairi shouted angrily. "Riku?! I know you're in there! Hurry up and come out, you slowpoke!"

"A foolish effort." Ansem scoffed. "Like all worlds, hearts too are born in darkness… and to darkness they shall return."

 _No. That's wrong! But the island, the last remaining part, the heart of it… It's disappearing. Does that mean… Is Ansem right?_

"You see, _darkness_ is the heart's true essence…" Ansem smiled predatorily. "You understand, don't you keyblade master?"

Sora froze, looking at Ansem with wide eyes. _How did he…?_

"Sora…" Donald bit his lip at the continued silence. "Wak, come on! Where's your obnoxious self?!"

Sora never even heard him, a feeling like a snake constricting around her heart emerging. Her mind was going into overdrive and panic only grew when she saw the shack beginning to fade away. The darkness might really be the true essence-

 _ **Don't be deceived. The darkness hides and obscures the truth.**_

…!

Images of Kairi and herself getting their hearts back, of Kairi telling Sora how Riku managed to still emerge and stop Ansem from controlling his body. Of saving all the princes of heart and being able to do all the miraculous things Sora would never have dreamed on, especially when circumstances seemed so dim…

 _That's right…_

"That's not true!" Sora shouted, glaring at Ansem. "The heart may be weak and sometimes it may even give in…!"

 _Like Destiny Islands was already swallowed up… Like how I turned into a heartless… Like how just now I nearly…!_

Sora scowled. "But I've learned that deep down there's a light that _never_ goes out!"

 _I believe! Because I found my way back from the darkness and so did Kairi! Because my Island still remained even after being destroyed by the darkness! And if it did it once, it can do so again! And Riku can come back too! I can't forget that and I won't be deceived! Light will never truly be extinguished from the heart!_

Ansem sighed, beginning to rise so he hovered in midair. "So you've come so far and still… you understand _nothing_."

"Shut up!"

Kairi had enough and launched forward, only for Ansem to scoff and summon his heartless shadow. It quickly grabbed Kairi's keyblade before sending some sort of dark matter along the hilt. As such, Kairi screamed in pain.

"Kairi!" Sora quickly ran forward but Ansem was already moving back, smirking as Kairi collapsed to the ground.

"Heal!" Donald raised his staff and Kairi groaned.

"You idiot!" Sora shouted, whacking him over the head. "If you want to fight, you fight _with_ us!"

 _Was this how foolish I was when I first came to Traverse Town?!_

Kairi groaned again, getting up unsteadily. "R-Right… I think I'll stick to spells with Donald. Maybe keyblade use after I've got more experience…"

The island started shaking suddenly and Sora's heart leapt in her throat when her island seemed to just split in two, some sort of dark circular area in the middle. Ansem stood in the middle, grinning mockingly as if to say 'see, darkness is the truth. Your island is no more'.

 _Ansem… You won't trick me again!_

"Guys…" Sora moved forward, pivoting so she could swing her keyblade around and launch it at Ansem. Goofy charged in front of her to do a follow-up attack but Sora's attack never connected.

A huge black hand grabbed the keyblade and effortlessly whacked it away from its incoming course. Large yellow eyes glowed as they stared at Sora and her eyes flickered with realisation. "You're never going to leave me alone, are you?!"

 _ **It. Feed. Hearts.**_ _ **It**_ _ **eats.**_

Sora blanched, looking up at the Darkside. _I remember the voice calling it my shadow but… I turned into a heartless, didn't I…? Not that thing… But… This is so confusing…_

"FIRE!" Donald squawked at the Darkside, which jerked back as the fire lit up its face. "Sora, you take care of Ansem with Goofy! We got this!"

Sora nodded, trusting her friends would be able to defeat it (and distantly she wondered if they knew it was her shadow specifically they were fighting). She and Goofy turned as one to face Ansem, who sent glowing wind sickle spinning towards them without any further warning.

"HYA!" her keyblade cleaved the first two sickles in half but the third one clipped her in the side as it had changed directions suddenly. _It has a mind of its own…?!_

Without missing a beat, Sora got a potion from her pocket and healed herself, shooting a fire spell into the ground to cause both smoke and sand in the air to blind Ansem. She was pleased to note her next attack collided with Ansem but not before he sent electric waves hurtling in every direction… including herself. She tried to ignore the pain but her arm kept spasming, making it hard to wield the keyblade correctly.

 _I should change hands…_

It was a risky move but Sora couldn't very well fight without the keyblade and she had no more potions left to heal her-

"CURE!" Donald's healing spell washed over her and he and Kairi joined the battle. "Sora, you okay?!"

"I'm fine!" Sora turned to see Ansem blast Goofy away. This was going to be a hard fight.

Ansem's head snapped up and his eyes narrowed. And slowly… Slowly a smirk found its way onto his face and he sneered proudly at them. "…Fools. It is… TIME!"

When Sora blinked next, she found herself in a void.

Endless darkness was the only thing she could describe it as. It was extremely familiar to when she had lost her heart, sending bone-chilling shivers over her body. She could feel the same numb, fear-curling thoughts rise within her. She wasn't going to make it. She wasn't strong enough-

" _ **Come on, Sora! Giving up already? I thought you were stronger than that!"**_

"Sora?" Kairi was beside her, gripping her hands tightly. She could see his face was pale and he seemed to be shaking somewhat.

 _Of course… He's probably as shaky as I am… Right. In times like this, I have to trust my friends will never let my heart die. I know you'll always bring me back!_

Goofy stepped forward, smiling encouragingly at them despite the atmosphere. "Our hearts aren't goin' nowhere, hyuk!"

"…Right." Sora nodded softly.

"Behold the endless abyss!" Ansem smirked eerily a few metres away, his amber eyes glowing like the heartless. "Within it lies the heart of all worlds: KINGDOM HEARTS!"

He pointed towards a huge white door which was cracked open, emitting visible darkness mists. Sora herself could sense there was something dangerous about this darkness and she knew… this was the source of darkness the princes of heart had asked Sora and Kairi to close.

 _But Kingdom Hearts is the source of all darkness…? No, no that's not right!_

"You lose, keyblade wielder."Ansem started chuckling. "No matter how strong you are, once I get the power of darkness from Kingdom Hearts-"

"You're wrong!" Sora interrupted him, feeling something warm in her chest spurring her on ( _Riku…There is light… Always in the Darkness… If light never goes out… Then Kingdom Hearts must be…_ ). "I know now, without a doubt that Kingdom Hearts… IS LIGHT!"

The door suddenly shone magnificently and the darkness seemed to evaporate from the area.

"…What…? H-How…?! I-Impossible!"

A fierce sort of joy and happiness seemed to envelop them all, almost to the point of staggering. However, the light was so intense that Sora had to close her eyes. She could feel her friends beside her giving alarmed shouts but Sora knew she didn't have to fear anything. In all darkness, there is a light.

Kingdom Hearts was that light.

The light gradually trickled down and faded, leaving the four alone in the darkness with no sign of Ansem.

"Is he… gone…?" Kairi asked unsurely.

"A being seeking the darkness, filled with darkness himself… I'd say the light was something he couldn't handle." Sora contemplated. "So yes, I'd say so."

"…You've gotten smart, Sora."

"…I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that."

"H-Hey fellas! The door!" Goofy shouted.

As the door was open, they were able to see what was inside. Heartless. Too many to count. Too many to fight. It went on and on.

"We have to close the door!" Sora shouted, running forward and pushing with all her might against the door. "It's… not budging!"

"We can do it…!" Kairi muttered but still, the door was too heavy to push.

"Don't give up!"

Everyone's eyes widened as Riku came from _inside_ Kingdom Hearts to grab the door and start tugging.

"R-Riku…?!"

Riku grinned. "The one and only. Now hurry up, we need to close this before the heartless escape!"

"But… You'll be closed in!" Sora said helplessly.

"There's always a way to the light, Sora!" a high pitched voice came from somewhere behind Riku and Donald and Goofy shouted in joy.

"You're Majesty!"

The mouse smiled, holding up his golden keyblade. "Kingdom Hearts has darkness but remember: it is forever light! There will always be a way!"

"I… Right!" Sora started pushing and it was like a domino effect because all her friends joined her.

"Sora… Kairi… Take care of each other." Riku said as the door began to close.

"Che! You better not be saying goodbye, stupid!" Kairi scowled. "We'll find you again and you'll help out because there's no way I can take care of Sora with all the trouble she gets in!"

… _Why do they always tease me?_

"You know, Sora. If this is the type of friends you like…" Donald was shaking with laughter.

"S-Shut up! Riku, stop your yapping and just say 'see you soon' alright?!"

Riku smiled. "Yeah. See you soon."

"Now let's close this door for good!" King Mickey shouted, his keyblade starting to glow.

The door closed with that image and quickly Sora and Kairi pulled out their keyblades, pointing it at Kingdom Hearts. The beam shot out and there was a distinctly loud clicking sound of it being locked.

…Then there was silence as the door disappeared.

"…So ah… Do we go forward?" Goofy pointed to the path in front of them.

"Seems like it." Sora grinned… just as the ground began to shake. "WAH!"

The ground between Sora and Kairi split, the ground Kairi being on turning to sand distinctly like Destiny Islands…

"Oh no way!" Kairi shouted, quickly jumping to stand beside Sora. "There is no way I'm going to the Islands without Sora and Riku! I'm not going to be standing on the sidelines anymore! I _can_ fight!"

 _Poorly but I think I'll keep my mouth shut so he doesn't kill me…_

The sand ground slowly moved away and then disappeared. Around them light began moving around and they could all sense something was happening.

"It seems… The worlds are being restored…" Sora said, turning to Donald and Goofy. "Come on. We still have two more people to find before we can go home, right?"

"Hyuk! That's right!" Goofy nodded just as the scenery changed to a green field. "Huh… Ya' know, this seems familiar…"

"Maybe we've been here before." Donald admitted, grinning at Sora and Kairi. "So Kairi, what do you think of-"

"HEY LOOK! IT'S PLUTO! HAHAHA! WHAT ARE THE CHANCES OF SEEING HIM HERE?!" Sora said deliberately loud so Donald would not finish that question (though he was laughing at her right now). "S-Shut up, Donald! …Hang on… Is that a letter Pluto's holding?!"

"The King's seal!" Goofy looked at them. "Come on! What're we waitin' for?!"

Sora and Kairi looked at each other, grinning from ear to ear.

"Race you!"

"If I win, you're telling me what Donald was going to say!"

"It's a good thing you never win!"

"Wak! Wait for me!"

"Hyuk! They seem to be havin' fun!"

The four of them quickly followed after Pluto, knowing that the King and Riku were probably nearby. It was time to finally reunite again.

* * *

 **Me:** That's it! What do people think? I'll see you next time for **Whinnie the Pooh Extra Chapter**.

Ps. I still need to fully watch Chain of Memories Walk through to understand everything before I consider writing the fanfic. But I'll definitely put it into consideration (after all, with Kairi there, things will probably be different, right?)


	48. Winnie The Pooh Special

**Me:** Okay! This is the **Winnie the Pooh Special Chapter _._** It it what happens when Sora enters Pooh's world at the end of Chapter 36.

 **Sora:** *bouncing around eagerly* Tell them that **other thing**!

 **Me:** Okay, okay! Calm down... Anyway, there will also be a **sneak preview of Kingdom Hearts II (Chapter 1)**

* * *

"Splendid!" Merlin beamed as he grabbed the pages from Sora's hands. "Why, this is all of the pages from the book… I must admit, this is amazing!"

"Thank Pluto." Sora smiled, remembering all the times Pluto managed to somehow just _find_ all the pages.

"Hoho, he is a clever creature, isn't he?" Merlin laughed before waving his wand. "Here goes!"

The pages glowed briefly for a second, hovering midair before they sped towards the book. The book seemed to absorb them, sucking them in like a vacuum.

And Sora went along with them.

"…" Merlin blinked, staring around but nope, Sora was gone. The book closed itself and gently floated down, lying innocently on the bookstand. "And I was sure I'd cast the spell correctly… Oh dear… I'd better go tell Leon and the others…"

Meanwhile…

"Omph!" Sora stumbled forward, tripping over her own feet and crashing into the ground."Oww…"

Getting up, Sora's eyes widened as she saw she was standing on what appeared to be a humongous book. Above her was white space, no sign of Merlin's room at all. It was like she had been sucked into a void of absolutely nothing. Sucked into a… "Did I… just get sucked into a _book?_ "

The brunette frowned thoughtfully… before shrugging and walking forward, whistling a merry tune. _Oh well, stranger things have happened._

Startlingly enough, as Sora started walking, the scenery around her seemed to shift and change, colour bursting forth. Trees appeared and the scene seemed to reveal itself before her. Sora seemed to be standing on a path winding through the woods. And funnily enough, there seemed to be ahouse taking shape.

"Oh." It was a house.. or at least a small hut-like home. "Wait, _what_?"

"Think, think."

Sora jumped, mouth dropping open as a yellow-brown bear appeared suddenly. He was sitting in front of the house on the log and he had a troubled frown on his face.

 _Really? He just appeared…? Hmm, maybe I can talk to him._

"Hey there!" Sora grinned, putting her hands behind her head. "Is something wrong?"

The bear looked up and smiled slightly. "Hello to you too. I'm just thinking."

"About what?"

The bear frowned thoughtfully. "Hmm… I've forgotten what I was thinking about. What was it…? Think, think…"

"Heh. Maybe you should go for a walk?" Sora grinned sheepishly. "That's what I usually do when I forget something."

The bear stood up. "That's a good idea. Would you like to join me, new friend?"

"Sure! It will be nice to get a break from Donald's loud voice!" Sora laughed. "I'm Sora."

"I'm Pooh."

They started walking, with Pooh occasionally muttering "think, think" under his breath (which made Sora grin in amusement). The bear was pretty funny.

 _I never imagined there'd be a world inside a book though. I guess there really are a lot of things I don't know._

"H-HELLPPP!"

A loud voice shouted from above them and looking up, Sora was able to see a red balloon in the sky.

"That's what I was thinking about!" Pooh smiled happily as he started walking forward, hands outstretched under the balloon as if it would fall. "Hold on, Piglet."

 _Pooh's… talking to a balloon…?_

"HELLPPP!"

 _Ah._

Sora finally noticed the small pink piglet hanging off the balloon string. And then she clicked."A-AH! H-Hang on!"

Running after Pooh, Sora tried jumping up to reach the balloon but she was too short (stupid height thing!). Unfortunetly, the ballon was heading straight for the branches of a humongous tree.

 _It's going to pop! And there isn't even any shrub or trees for the little guy to fall safely on!_

"WAHH!"

Just as Sora feared, the balloon popped and little Piglet sailed towards the ground. Pooh, at the same time, had been looking upwards and ended up crashing into the tree because he hadn't been watching where he was going.

 _NO!_

"HYA!" Sora launched in the air, somehow doing a great leap and jumping even higher than she realised ( _a high jump?!_ ) as she caught Piglet.

As such, Sora went right through the middle of the tree (thankfully not slamming into any branches) … but ended up jumping so far she jumped right off the hill.

"WHAAA!" Piglet and she were both panicking as they sailed towards the ground.

…Only they impacted with something instead. Something which gave a loud "Omph" as well.

"Ow…" Sora rubbed the back of her head before making sure Piglet was okay (Piglet was huddling near her neck). "Are you okay?"

"G-G-Goodness!" the Piglet stuttered. "T-T-That was f-frightening…!"

"…Good day, Piglet." A low, drone-like voice said from under them.

"E-Eeyore?!" Piglet gasped and they quickly moved off the donkey. "A-A-Are y-you o-okay?!"

"I'm fine." The donkey sighed. "…Nothin' to it."

"Good day, Eeyore." Pooh appeared from the path leading up to the tree. "What brings you here?"

"…Have you seen my tail?" the donkey looked between the three of them, sighing once more. "It seems I've lost it again."

Sora blinked, looking around for a few seconds before finally noticing a blue tail hanging in the tree. "Oh! It's up there! …But how did that happen?"

"Who knows?" Eeyore blinked dully, looking up at Sora. "I don't suppose I could ask for your help? …But then again, you don't have to if you don't want too…"

"No, that's fine! I'll help!" Sora grinned and the four of them started walking back up the hill. "I'm Sora, by the way!"

"The name's Eeyore…" the donkey gave a faint smile.

"Sora was just taking a walk with me." Pooh explained… just as his stomach growled. "Oh bother, I'm hungry."

"T-There's a-another big tree n-n-near here, i-isn't there, Pooh?" Piglet asked shyly, still sitting on Sora's shoulder.

"I think you're right. But…" Pooh licked his lips. "Maybe we should pop by and see Rabbit for a few pots or two. Much quicker, that way."

Sora grinned. "After we get Eeyore's tail back."

In the end, the four of them ended up standing on top of one another's shoulders to try and get the tail (because Piglet was afraid of heights and didn't want to climb the branch).

"O-O-O-Oh d-d-dear!" Piglet was shaking like a leaf as he covered his eyes and feebly waved his hands about to try and grab the tail.

Piglet was standing on Pooh's head, Pooh was standing on Sora's shoulders, and Sora was standing on Eeyore's back. As such, they wobbled quite a bit.

"You can do it, Piglet!" Sora cheered him on.

"Sora's right! We believe in you, Piglet." Pooh said warmly.

"O-O-Okay…!" Piglet opened his eyes before gulping and jumping slightly, just managing to grab Eeyore's tail and land safely in Pooh's hand. "I-I d-did it!"

"Much obliged, Piglet…" Eeyore said slowly as he looked up.

"A-Ah, don't move!" Sora panicked, but the movement caused her feet slip. "WHAAA!"

They all ended up crashing on top of poor Eeyore once again.

"Whoo-hoo-hoo-hoo! Everyone's playing a-bouncing without the bouncin' Tigger?!"

"T-Tigger, no!" Piglet stuttered but it was too late and an orange blur crashed into them, causing them all to be squished even more.

"Urgh…" Sora muttered as Pooh finally got off her face. Curious black eyes looked straight at her. "AHH!"

"Hoo! Now _you_ I haven't seen before. The name's Tigger! _T-I-Double GUH-RR_!" Tigger bounced off her, only to continue bouncing around on his tail.

 _Oh, that looks cool!_

"Haha, I'm Sora! I'm guessing you like to jump a lot?"

"Yep, you guessed right! I'm the bouncin' champion!" Tigger bounced all around her as if to prove a point.

"Well, you all are here! Good, good!"

The group turned to see a yellow rabbit, followed by two Kangaroos and an owl.

"Rabbit, Owl, Kanga, Roo. Good day to you." Pooh smiled as the four newcomers joined them at the top of the hill. "What brings you here?"

"Well, seeing as he haven't really seen each other in a long time-"

"Huh? I thought you all were friends?" Sora blinked confused. "Why don't you hang out?"

Rabbit turned to her. "Friends don't necessarily have to hang out all the time. Sometimes we get split apart. But what's important is that we never forget. We'll always find our way back to each other."

"Y-Y-Yes, b-b-but i-it's a-awful lonely until then…" Piglet frowned. "I h-h-had no idea where anybody was…"

"But now we're together again, right?" Roo, the smaller Kangaroo piped up. "Me and Tigger can go bouncing again!"

"We'll always find our way back to each other, huh…?" Sora said thoughtfully before grinning. "I suppose that makes sense!"

"Who are you, by the way?" Owl asked curiously, making Sora sweatdrop.

"This here's Sora!" Pooh smiled as he wordlessly grabbed a honey pot from Rabbit's wheelbarrow (to the latter's exasperation). "She's our new friend."

"Ho ho ho, is that so? Nice to meet you, Sora." Owl said. "Would you like to watch the sunset with us?"

"Sure!" Sora grinned as they all sat on the hill and the sky started to turn a lovely shade of red.

 _Always return, huh…_

The group was peaceful as the day shifted to night, light hearted and fun chatter passing the time. So when Sora got up, everyone stared in confusion.

"Is something wrong, Sora?" Pooh asked worriedly.

"Nah'. I've just got to go find my friends now. They're still waiting for me." Sora smiled and Pooh bit his lip.

"But I don't want you to go…" Pooh looked down sadly.

"Heh. Remember what we all talked about? If we never forget each other, we'll always find our way back."

"…Okay. We'll be waiting here for you then."

Sora grinned, looking at all her new friends. "Alright. Bye everyone!" Sora waved as she jumped off the hill, following the path. The scenery shifted, changing to a foggy white before she suddenly-

…crashed to the ground yet again.

"GRRR! How many times am I going to fall today?!" Sora scowled before blinking rapidly as she took in her surroundings. "Wait! I'm back in Merlin's house!"

Spinning around, Sora quickly saw the 100 Acre Woods book and gasped in surprise. On the cover was Pooh and her standing on the hill, holding hands and smiling at the night sky.

 _Always come back…_

"It's a promise, Pooh." Sora said determinedly. "I'll never forget my friends!"

* * *

 **The END!**

 **Me:** And Kingdom Hearts: Princes of Heart is now finished! So here is a little present from me :)

* * *

 **KINGDOM HEARTS II (CHAPTER 1-SNEAK PREVIEW):**

"…ra…! So…ra…!"

Sora opened her eyes slowly, blinking dazedly. White, white all around her.

 _The hospital…? No… Ah well, it doesn't matter… I'm tired…_

" **SORA, WAKE UP YOU LAZY IDIOT!"**

"WHAAA!" Sora jumped a mile as Donald grabbed her and dragged her forward. "D-Donald, let go!"

The duck kept scowling, muttering under his breath as they walked towards Goofy. The trio were in a huge circular white room. It didn't seem to be a hospital. In fact, there was nobody around them at all and if it wasn't for the small patterns on the door, Sora would have panicked and thought there was no escaping the white void around them.

"Hey guys? Where are… *yawn*… we?" she couldn't help but yawn, trying once more to fight off the tiredness in her limbs.

"Gwarsh, I dunno'" Goofy smiled, turning to Jiminy who was opening his book. "What does your journal say?"

"Hmm… WHAT?!" Jiminy gasped. "The pages! They're all blank-…Hang on, there's a few words here."

Sora, Donald and Goofy looked at each other. All Jiminy's entries had vanished?

"It says: _**Thank Namine and Axel.**_ Gee, I wonder what that means?" the cricket pondered. "Maybe we'll find them on our travels."

"Well, either way, what were we doing last?" Sora grinned, heading for the door. "Weren't we chasing after Pluto or something…AH!"

"The King's letter!" Donald said excitedly. "That means he got out safely!"

"And Riku too. We're trying to find them, right?" Sora looked left and right (where were they? A… mansion?). "Funny, it seems so long ago since we defeated Ansem and closed Kingdom Hearts…"

"Well, ya' have grown quite a bit Sora." Goofy laughed, pointing at Sora's shorts and then her hair. "You're becomin' a adult now! Hyuk!"

Sora snorted before frowning at her long hair. "Geez… How long were we snoozing for anyway…?"

"Hey wait!" Jiminy jumped in alarm. "Where's your pal, Kairi?!"

"Eh?" Sora blinked… and clicked. "AHHHHHHHHH!"

* * *

 **Me:** And there we go! What do people think? Please bare in mind that I won't be writing Chain of Memories or 365/2 Days ( _yet_ ) due to the want to keep Kingdom Hearts II suspenseful to my viewers. Thank you all for staying with me until now and see you all for the sequel!

* * *

 **MY KINGDOM HEARTS II STORY WILL START AROUND A WEEK FROM NOW (April 1** **st** **) UNDER THE TITLE:**

 _ **KINGDOM HEARTS II (FEM SORA)**_


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